Sonamy: I remember 2: Not the Same
by papapa
Summary: It's been 20 years. 20 years since the end of the Freedom Fighters, 20 years of peace, 20 years of prosperity, 20 years of love and 20 years of happiness. But when a villain rises up. It will take the fastest thing alive to take him down. However, if that enemy is defeated, will the fastest thing alive be able to control himself? Amy must see if he can give up his speed once again.
1. Characters

**What is up people! papapa here to give you an update! **

**So, I am so excited! A new story! This will be quite a story, trust me. If all goes well, I will start the next school year when this finishes. I have big plans for this story. Anyway, if you are new to this story, you shouldn't read it. You MUST read my story "I remember" before you read this one, otherwise, nothing will make sense. You have to read the previous story please! I don't want people coming into this story wondering a whole lot of things that could easily be explained if they read "I remember". Anyway, that is not why I am writing this first page. This is.**

**Characters:**

**Sonic the Hedgehog: A 38 year old blue hedgehog. He is the wheelchair bound hero of Mobius. He can never run again, but dreams of it every night.**

**Amy Rose: A 37 year old pink hedgehog. She is the wife of Sonic, and his supporter and caregiver. Sonic may not be able to run, but she still loves him.**

**Clare the Hedgehog: A 16 year old purple hedgehog. She is the daughter of Sonic and Amy. She dreams of making her father proud and filling his shoes.**

**Sparky the Hedgehog: A 16 year old black hedgehog. He is the best archer in Mobius and does not know his parents. He's tough, cocky, and full of adventure.**

**Tails the Fox: A 32 year old yellow fox. He is fair king of the Acorn Kingdom. He is wise, smart, and peaceful, unlike the last King.**

**Rob O' Hedge: A 46 year old teal hedgehog. He was the best archer in Mobius for most of his life. Although he is old, he still has some fight left in him.**

**Well, that is it for the main characters, I hope this tells you a little about what is going to happen. Anyway, don't read this story until you have read and finished "I remember". Good day to you loyal and new readers.**


	2. Letters

"**Then He (Jesus) spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart."**

**-Luke 18:1**

"Okay class, open up your history books to page 117." the teacher announced

The entire 2nd year class of Mobius high opened their textbooks. They flipped through the pages that recorded detailed information of the history of the planet Mobius, from the gene-bomb to the bombing of the Knothole village. When the class was finally finished turning to page 117, they say two things. On the top of the page was a picture of a shadowy figure. It appeared to be a blue hedgehog in a black hood and cape. He was wearing a gray scarf that covered his lower face. On the bottom of the page was the picture of King Elias Acorn and his sister Sally. They both had angered looks on their faces and appeared to be paranoid. The teacher spoke up.

"Class, today we will be studying the most recently recorded section of our books. "The dark times". Now, this was not that long ago, only about twenty years. It was a time of pain and sorrow never before seen in our history. Not even during Dr. Eggman's years of war did we experience such loss, tragedy, and sadness. I was only a girl during that time, but the images it left are burned into my memory. You are all very lucky, you will most likely never experience the type of war and rebellion that we did. King Tails is a fair and just leader. Unlike our last one, King Elias." the teacher announced

One of the students raised his hand. The teacher called on him.

"Yes, who is this at the top of the page? It looks like a demon, but it resembles a hedgehog." the student asked

"That is not a hedgehog, that is a "Ghost", a hero, a hero who you all have learned about. A hero you all will never truly understand. He fought for so long, and gave up so much, that you would be hard pressed to find a person more dedicated to his friends, and to Mobius. Does that answer your question?" the teacher said

The student nodded and continued reading. That day, the students learned about the "Ghost" and the "Hunter". They learned about what happened to the Acorn Kingdom after the death of Dr. Eggman. They learned about what the Freedom Fighters turned into, and what they did. They learned about Sonic, who had been betrayed and left the Freedom Fighters. They learned about Sally brainwashing the Freedom Fighters. They learned about the secret love between Sonic and Amy that blossomed during this time, they learned about what happened to Sonic after the final battle with the Freedom Fighters and King Elias. They learned about his legs, his precious legs. They were gone after that battle due to a grenade thrown by Sally, which killed her, and scared Sonic. They learned about the anointment of King Tails. And finally, they learned about the marriage of Sonic and Amy.

Clare sat at her desk, her green eyes intently reading her textbook. She was a very pretty hedgehog. She was purple and had two pink hairs sticking out of her forehead. She wore a light blue T-shirt and a black short skirt. She had old laced-up shoes that were given to her by her mother. She was not popular however, she was considered a loser. She was the daughter of Sonic and Amy. She was required to live up to very high expectations, especially from the teachers. But she was clumsy and awkward. Nothing like her charming father and lovable mother. She had very few friends, Clare believed it was because her father was a cripple, and she was a dork that nobody was friends with her.

Suddenly, a small, wet spit ball hit her on the side of the head. She quickly looked over to her right side to see where the spit ball had come from. When she looked over, she spotted the culprit. It was a squirrel cheerleader, Angela, the hottest. She sat there with a straw in her hand and a wad of paper next to her. She giggled.

"What you looking at cripple's daughter?" Angela asked in a mocking tone

Clare turned red with embarrassment and slumped in her chair. She sniffled a little and looked down. She hated it when people made fun of her dad.

Sparky sat next to Angela and shook his head slowly in pity of Clare. Sparky was the most popular student at school. He was a black hedgehog with a white stomach and lower face. His blue eyes looked fondly at Clare. He wore a dark blue bandana tied around his neck. He had blue gloves on with white stripes down them. He had a gray utility belt on and blue shoes with a white stripe going down them. He was the only hedgehog that was considered cool. All the cheerleaders sat around him. Angela was his girlfriend, although he had never dated her, nor did he want to. They all giggled and whispered amongst themselves, gossiping about Clare. Angela shot another spit ball at Clare. It hit her in the eye. Clare let out the faintest whimper ever made. Not even the kid next to her could hear it, but Sparky could. He had an adept sense of hearing, due to being a hunter.

"Hey Angela, stop that. Leave Clare alone!" Sparky yelled, interrupting the class

Everybody looked at Sparky in awe. He had yelled. He was often very quiet and did not talk very much. Angela turned around and looked at him in disbelief. Her mouth was open.

"She's a dork Sparky. Her dad's a cripple, and her mom is crazy." She responded in a smug tone

Sparky gave Angela a long death stare. His dark blue eyes burned into her head. After a long stare, Angela slumped down and wrapped her tails around her in fear. Just then, the bell rang. Everybody got up and left.

Sparky was standing in front of his locker. The locker was the tallest one in school. Sparky pulled his bow and quiver out of his locker. He slung them around his back and grabbed his book-bag. Just before Sparky closed the locker, he spotted two envelopes on the top shelf of the locker. He slowly pulled them out and placed them in his utility belt. Sparky closed the locker and looked across he hallway at Clare, who was just closing her locker. Sparky watcher her with a compassionate gaze. She was a very pretty hedgehog, and he had a lot of respect for her and her family. Sparky gulped, he was going to give it to her, he had wanted to for a long time. He began to sweat from nervousness.

"Come on Sparky, you've killed a bear with you hands and wrestled snakes. Why am I afraid of a girl?" he whispered to himself

Sparky walked over to Clare. She was putting on her bag and was about to leave when Sparky rested his elbow on her locker. Clare looked over suddenly with a scared expression. She jumped back when she saw who it was.

"Sparky! What, what are you doing here?" she asked nervously

He chuckled nervously and looked down at his belt.

"Sorry about what happened in class. I wish I could have done more." he said quietly

"Oh it's fine." Clare said, playing with her two hairs on her forehead.

Sparky chuckled and slowly reached for his belt. He opened up on of the pockets and pulled out two letters. Clare watched anxiously, waiting to see what he was doing. He held the two letters out in front of him. One of them was crisp and clean. It had the outline of an arrow around the name Clare on it. The other one looked old. It was imprinted with a red wax seal with a "R" in it. Clare looked at the letters with wonder.

"I wanted to give these to you. One is for you, and I don't want you to open it until you get home. The other is for your dad, I can't tell you why, or who it's from, just give it to him." He said

She quickly nodded and took the letters from his hand. She placed them in her backpack and put it on. Before Clare could look back up at Sparky, he had disappeared. He had left without a sound or footsteps. She looked around to see where he was, he was nowhere to be found. But it did not bother Clare. She had a letter addressed to her from the most popular guy at school!

Amy sat at the table of the fortune teller. She was in a small wagon that belonged to a famous fortune teller. The inside of the cart was walled in by purple drapes. A large, three candle candle-stick lit up the dim room. Gold charms hung from the roof, jingling in the slight heat waves from the candles. A large crystal ball was in the center of the table, it appeared to be glowing. Amy looked closely into the ball. She saw gray clouds rolling inside of it. She was confused by it, but believed whatever it said.

"Like what you see my dear." said the fortune teller in her creepy voice

Amy looked up and saw an old female rabbit. She was grayed in the face and had wrinkles all over her. She was dressed in a gold tunic with a purple cape on. She had a large red turban on her head and massive gold ear-rings hung from her long rabbit ears. She was quite different compared to Amy. The mature pink hedgehog was now a woman and dressed like one. Her quills were longer, they reached her shoulders now. She wore a long light green dress with a pink apron over it. She still wore her old gloves and her red hair band.

"What does the crystal balls say ma'am?" Amy asked eagerly

the fortune teller closed her eyes, she put her hands on the ball and rubbed it. She hummed as she was thinking. Amy could not stand waiting fro the answer. She was here to get answers about her future with Sonic and Clare. She desperately wanted Sonic to regain his legs, but, she was out of ideas and had turned to fortune telling, the thing that brought her to Sonic, to reveal the answer. But it had been many years, and still no answer. Suddenly, the fortune teller opened her eyes. She had a disturbed and startled look on her face. Amy grew concerned and leaned forward.

"What's wrong, what did you see?" she asked nervously

"I saw your husband Sonic, I saw legs. I also saw a dark force come upon Mobius, I saw them battling Sonic. But it was not good, you may know your husband now, but soon, very soon, he will turn. He will be different, not the same, as some may say. Tread carefully young lady, for you may regret your deepest wishes."

Amy was shocked by the ominous words the fortune teller told. She was frozen. Tears began to well up in her eyes.

"No, no, Sonic would never change. He has never changed before-"

"That is not true." the fortune teller said, interrupting Amy. "He has changed, ever since he left the Freedom Fighters, he has not been the same. He is no longer the same hedgehog you once knew. I feel hate, sorrow, and regret in him. When he became the "Ghost", he changed. His heart grew dark and vengeful. I feel he has been deeply troubled ever since the day he left. Mind yourself young lady, he is dangerous and you must watch him. It rests in your hands to bring back your old Sonic."

Amy quickly stood up. She had an angered expression on her face. She huffed and stepped outside of the cart. Amy left quickly, she did not want to accept what she had just heard. But deep down, she knew it was true, she knew Sonic had changed, and not for the better. As Amy walked home, tears were filling up and blurring her vision. She knew something was wrong, and something horrible would happen soon.

Sonic sat under the short orange tree. He was sitting in his wheelchair, picking oranges off the tree. The summer air felt pleasantly cool on his blue fur. The sky was clear, its light blue color was lit up by the wonderful sun. Wild birds flew through the sky in the small neighborhood he and his family lived in. After Sonic and Amy had had Clare, they needed to moved back into a village. So they did, they found residence in the small village of Mossflower, the first village Sonic saved from the Freedom Fighters. Although they had lived there for years, he still found new things to look at outside. Sonic did not go outside much, it was hard for him to use his wheelchair off road, so he stayed inside and tended to the house most of his time. It was a depressing lifestyle, but Sonic still had a little bit of joy. His joy was his family, he loved Amy and Clare, he loved spending time with them, they kept him happy. While he hated not having his legs, he was still happy. If it was not for Amy, Sonic wouldn't have the will to live. She was his life now, and Clare was his responsibility. They were the only people he had left besides Rob and Tails.

Sonic looked up at the oranges that hung from the tree. He smiled and reached up for the ripest of the fruit. He picked off a large, bright orange fruit and placed it down in the basket. Sonic looked down at his basket, the wicker basket was resting on the empty feet-rests of the wheelchair. Sonic looked for a little while at the stubs he once called legs. His legs were blown off by a Freedom Fighter grenade the day he killed them and saved Amy. They were gone just above his knees. Sonic slowly placed his hand on the stubs and rubbed them. They had been bandaged for a very long time, now, the bandages were off and Sonic could feel the ends of the blue stubs. They felt weird, there were no nerves, sonic could not feel his hand touching the stubs, but he knew he was. Sonic let a tear fall when he thought about his legs. He was 18 when they left him, like how Sally left him. His first crush, but ultimately his downfall. Sonic looked back up when he heard a bird chirping. He looked up at the tree and saw a small blue bird standing on one of the branches of the tree. It appeared to have spotted Sonic and was looking directly at him. Sonic smiled and slowly stuck his hand out towards the bird.

"Come here little buddy." Sonic said softly

the bird jumped onto his open hand and continued to stared at him. Sonic chuckled and slowly brought his hand closer to him. Sonic looked at the bird and it was looking at him. Suddenly, Sonic heard a strange noise come from the bird. It was a faint "beep". Sonic cocked his head in confusion from what the bird just did. Then, without warning, the bird flew away quickly. It flew into the sky as fast as it could. Sonic wondered what he just saw. It was the most curious thing.

As the bird flew away, another beep came from the bird. Radio static began to come from its beak. Then the static stopped.

"Target acquired." The bird said

"Good, report back to base B-274." the voice said over the radio

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, this is the first real chapter to my story. I know, I have included my own fan-character in it, I am guilty. Anyway, the reason I had Sonic and Amy have a daughter is to help the story go along. This is kinda a sonamy, but more or less a story about what happened after "I remember". After this story is finished, I will make a completely new story not related to the others. Anyway, if you like where this is going, or you don't, please favorite and follow and DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE REVIEWS!. Anyway, see you all next time.**


	3. Ghost

"**Saying: "There was once in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man."**

**-Luke 18:2**

Sonic looked up at the blue summer sky. The strange bird that had made the beep sound was now lost from view. Sonic was confused by the bird. Birds do not make beeping noises. He decided not to think it over too hard. While looking up at the sky, Sonic began to just watch the small puffy clouds roll by. The almost clear skies were filled with birds and a light breeze helped them along. Sonic was awestruck by the beauty of the Mobian sky. He watched the birds fly by. They were so free, unlike him. They had no boundaries of what they could do, they could fly fast and fly high. Sonic felt depressed when he thought of how restricted he was now, how he could not run or be the fastest thing alive anymore.

"Why me?" Sonic whispered to himself

Suddenly, a scream came from down the street. It pulled Sonic out of his day dreams and he looked around frantically, searching for the person who screamed.

"Sonic!" The woman screamed again

Sonic instantly recognized the voice. Only one hedgehog in the world had a scream like that. It was a scream that, for so long, had represented happiness, death hug, love, and running away. It was Amy's scream. Sonic spotted her running down the gravel road towards their house. He chuckled when he saw her. She was out of breath and pulling up her long dress to help her run better. He long pink quills flew back as she ran. Eventually, she reached the mailbox of their house. Sonic was still sitting in the shade under the orange tree.

"Hey Ames, what's-"

Sonic's words were stopped when Amy pressed her lips and her body against his. Sonic was pleasantly surprised by her sudden and passionate kiss. Amy placed her palms on Sonic's cheeks and pressed her lips harder on him. It took a little while before Sonic embraced her kiss. After a while, Sonic put his arms on her waist and pulled her close. Eventually, Amy let up slightly to get air. She rested her forehead on his. The both panted from the long kiss. Sonic stared into Amy's emerald eyes with love, she was perfect in his eyes. But something was wrong, her eyes were filled with fear and tears. Sonic was speechless.

"What's up Ames? What's with this new found love?" Sonic joked, trying to lighten her mood.

Amy began to let fresh tears fall.

"Sonic, promise me you'll never change. Promise me we will be together forever. Promise me you will stay the same and love me and Clare." Amy whimpered

Sonic was confused by her strange words. They were ominous and filled with fear.

"Don't you worry Amy, I've never changed, and I never will. We will always be together, I promise you that." he said quietly, trying to sooth her.

"Don't make a girl a promise if you know you can't keep it." she whispered

Sonic hated it when she said that. He pulled her close and kissed her again. This time, he took her by surprise. Amy eventually embraced it. She kicked the basket of oranges aside and pressed her entire body against his. They continued to kiss for quite a few more minutes, enjoying every second of it. Eventually, Amy pulled away. For one long minute, they gazed into each others' eyes. Sonic lovingly stroked one of Amy's bangs back into place.

"Don't worry Amy, I'm not going anywhere." he said softly

Amy nodded slowly and stood up. She fixed her dress and began to walk inside. As she was walking inside, Sonic patted her in the butt as she walked away. Amy jumped in surprised and turned he head around and looked at him with a seductive smile. Sonic looked up and her and chuckled. Amy giggled and walked inside.

* * *

Sonic was busy cleaning up the oranges that Amy had kicked aside. He knelt down and methodically picked up each orange. Suddenly, another scream came from the road. Sonic quickly looked up to see you had screamed. Nobody was around. But then, Sonic spotted somebody running. He recognized the hedgehog that was running. It was Clare. Sonic grew incredibly worried. He feared that someone was chasing her, or she had been hurt in some way. Sonic quickly wheeled himself over to the mailbox and sat there, frantically searching for Clare. He saw her running towards him as fast as she could. Sonic was too afraid for words. When Clare reached him, she stopped, bent down, put her hands on her knees and panted. Sonic was terrified. He wheeled closer to her and put his hand on her back.

"Clare, what's wrong? What happened?" he asked seriously

Clare didn't respond. After a few seconds, she took off her backpack and held it in front of her. She stopped panting and opened the bag.

"You know that cute boy at school?" she asked

"Yeah, the reckless, irresponsible, and cocky hedgehog. Isn't his name Sparky?" he responded cautiously

"Yep, that him. Well, he came up to me today." she said in a dreamy voice

Sonic got mad at Sparky for whatever she was about to say he did to her.

"What did he do?" Sonic asked in an irritated tone

Clare pulled out two letters from her backpack and gave one of them to him. Sonic inspected the letter. It was an envelope made of old wax paper. A red wax stamp was sealing it. Sonic instantly recognized the stamp. A "R" was imprinted on it. It was from Rob O' hedge!

"Sparky told me to give that one to you, I don't know who it's from, or why. Sparky told me just to give it to you. The other one is for me, he said not to open it until I get home. I'm so excited dad!"

Sonic continued to look at the envelope.

"Go, go inside Clare, help your mom with dinner, and grab the basket of oranges. Then maybe I can get you new clothes tomorrow." Sonic said, still staring at the letter.

Clare nodded, kissed Sonic on the cheek, grabbed the basket of oranges, and walked inside. Sonic slowly opened the letter. He pulled out the letter and opened it.

"Dearest friend, Sonic.

How are you my friend? How is Amy and Clare? I am sorry about not writing to you as often as I used to. I remember how much we used to write to each other. You used to write all the time, asking for advice on how to raise your daughter. Well, that is not the point, I am here to tell you a few things. I have tried something new. I have acquired a new apprentice. His name you may know, his name is Sparky. I have decided that there must always be an archer in Mobius, willing to help those in need. I found him in Robotropolis in a dumpster. He was just a babe, but I feel he will become a true hero someday. I have sent him to give you this letter. I some more news as well. I am inviting you to dinner at my cottage tomorrow. I am having a feast, Sparky will be attending. If you would like to bring Clare, you are invited to. Well, I hope to see you there. Why not attend. It will be just like old times, we can talk and drink. We can catch up, and it would do us both good to see each other.

Sincerely, Rob of the Hedge"

Sonic read and re-read the letter over and over again. He had no idea what think of this letter. He slowly turned around and went inside.

* * *

Clare ran up the stairs and into her room. She slammed the door behind her and jumped onto her small bed. Her room was small, but nice. It was a hot pink room with a window on one wall. A small bed was in one corner, her dresser was on another, and a desk was on another. Blue bean-bag chairs were on one wall, and a table with a TV on it was on another wall. Posters of bands and boys were all over the walls of her room. Clare jumped onto her bed. She threw her backpack to the side and pulled out the letter Sparky had given her. It was a crisp and fresh letter. Her name was carefully written in cursive with an archer's arrow outlining it. Clare slowly opened the envelope and pulled out the letter. She opened it and read it.

"Dear Clare,

Hi, I don't have enough courage to ask you face to face, but. Would you like to go and get a chili-dog sometime at Sal's? If you don't want to, that's fine. But if you want to, tell me. Anyway, I'll see you later.

Sincerely, Sparky"

The letter was short, but cut strait to the point. Clare was speechless when she was finished with the letter. She lay frozen on her bed. She was in shock of what she had just read. For her, it was not even a real decision. Of coarse she wanted go out with him. But she would have to get it past her dad. HE was always very protective of her. He never approved of any boy she ever talked about. He always said.

"I bet you you'll never find a boy who I will approve of, if you do, I owe you a hover-board."

Clare rolled over and looked up at the ceiling. She giggled and rolled around on her bed. She was so excited, she would be able to go out with the most popular guy at school! Suddenly, a knock came from her door. Clare sat up and exhaled loudly.

"Clare the hedgehog, if you don't get down to dinner now, I'm gonna use the hammer and knock down that door!" yelled Amy from the other side of the door

"Just a second mom!" Clare yelled back

Suddenly, the door smashed open. Chunks of wood flew everywhere. Clare screamed in terror from the sudden door smash. After the wood had stopped flying, Clare slowly stood up and looked at the doorway. On the other side was Amy standing there with an angered look. She was standing with one hand on her hip and the other holding onto her piko piko hammer, which was resting on her shoulder.

"That's why I don't piss off your mom Clare!" Yelled Sonic from downstairs

Clare's mouth hung open in shock of what her mom had just done. That was the third door this year.

"Jeez mom. I'm coming." Clare said walking over to the door

Everybody sat around the round wooden table in the kitchen. Amy had prepared a wonderful dinner, a beef stew. Sonic sat, enjoying the meal, Amy was as well. But Clare sat there resting her head on her shoulder, staring at the stew. Her face was depressed. Sonic noticed her and stopped eating.

"What's wrong Clare, Don't you like stew?" Sonic asked

Clare didn't look up.

"Yeah, but I have a question dad." Clare asked

"Anything." he responded

"Do you remember telling me that if I find a boy you approve of, I can get a hover-board?"

"Yeah." he responded cautiously

"Well, if I brought Sparky over, I am sure you would approve of him."

Sonic put down his spoon and stared at Clare with a tire look. Amy grew nervous and hunched over a little, trying to stay out of it.

"Clare, you know I already don't like him. He is too reckless and cocky. When you finally find a man to get into a relationship with instead of a boy, then we can talk."

"Dad, no guy will ever be good enough huh?!" Clare said, getting up and stamping up the stairs.

Sonic looked over at Amy, who was looking at him. She sat up and took Sonic's hand.

"Sonic, you know Clare is having a tough time. She just got a letter from him and she has had a crush on him for a long time. At least humor her. Hey, why don't we bring her along when we go to Rob's house tomorrow?" Amy suggested

Sonic looked down and sighed.

"I know, and he is Rob's apprentice. But I mean, I just want Clare to have a nice guy, not someone who will break her heart like I did to you." Said Sonic

Amy leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

"Sonic, that is all in the past, you need to focus on the present. I know you are still guilty after all these years, but you have to let Clare be free." Amy said softly

Sonic nodded in agreement. Later that night, Amy and Sonic were in their bed. Sonic was reading a book, and Amy was just staring out at the window across from the bed. It was storming outside, rain water patted against the window pane, making an annoying pinging sound. The thunder and lightning were violently raging outside. As Amy looked outside, she thought about Sonic. She thought about what the fortune teller had told her. She thought about what it meant, and when it might happen. She was becoming paranoid, and it was taking a toll on her. She could not get the thought of Sonic turning different out of her head. It was like him, a ghost that haunted people. This time, instead of the Freedom Fighters he was fighting, it was her. Amy just couldn't shake him off her mind. Suddenly, a bright flash of lighting lit up the window. For a brief moment, Amy saw something standing on a tree branch outside the window. It was a black, shadowy figure. It was a hedgehog. But something was wrong, it was wearing a cloak. A cloak that was torn, and in the light, had blood smeared on it. The eyes of the hedgehog were glowing red. It had anger in its eyes. In its hand was what appeared to be Tails' crown. But the thing that was most disturbing about this figure, was its smile. Its smile spread across its face. It was a sinister smile that had an eerie sense of insanity to it. After the lighting disappeared, Amy thought the shadowy figure was gone, but it wasn't. She could still see its eyes. Suddenly, Amy felt like something was blowing against her ear. She turned her head slowly, shaking as well. When she turned her head, she saw something that terrified her. It was the same hedgehog that was in the tree. But in the light, Amy instantly recognized the demon-like hedgehog. It was blue, and one of its ears was torn off. A scare went down one of its eyes. It was Sonic! The demon opened its mouth and spoke in a truly sinister tone.

"I'm coming, and there is nothing you can do to stop me. I am the beginning, and the end. Prepare for the end." it hissed

Amy screamed at the top of her lungs. The hedgehog blew away like dust into the air. Amy continued to scream louder than she ever had before. She began to cry and whimper. Sonic was alarmed and held her in his arms. He turned her head to look at him. He was disturbed by what he saw. She was crying and screaming. The was white in the face and appeared to not be focusing on Sonic, or anything.

"Amy! Amy! Listen to me, snap out of it! I'm here, don't cry!" Sonic yelled, trying to calm her down

But Amy continued to scream. Sonic had no choice, he slapped her. Amy snapped out of her scream and stared at Sonic, still crying. She whined and whimpered, Sonic pulled her close and let her cry on his chest. He put his hand on the back of her head and stroked her softly.

"Shh, there, there Amy, I'm here, you can stop crying. Shh, don't cry my little rose, I got you, I got you." Sonic whispered

Amy continued to cry into his chest.

"S-Sonic... i-it... was you. It was you... y-you... Sonic!" Amy cried

Sonic held her close and kissed her forehead. He held her in his arms for the rest of the night. He continued to let her cry into his chest. He held onto her, comforting her the entire night. The whole night, Amy spoke about leaving, and Sonic, and him destroying something. At one point, she began to just repeat the word "Gone". Eventually, Amy fell asleep in his arms. Sonic just sat there, stroking her for the rest of the night. He wondered what was going on with her. He needed to know, he needed to help her. Eventually, Sonic fell asleep as well.

Sonic was in his wheelchair. He looked around, the space he was in was completely black, but he could see himself perfectly. The space was quiet, nothing was around this empty world for what seemed to expand forever. Sonic wheeled himself forward. He looked around confused.

"Hello, is anybody here?!" He called out

Suddenly, a deep, mysterious, and sinister laugh rang out through out the space.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ah!" Laughed the dark voice

Sonic looked around frantically, searching for the source of the voice, but there was none.

"Welcome Sonic." Said the dark voice

"H-How do you know my name?" Sonic asked nervously

Sonic was nervous, this place felt familiar, but hostile.

"I am what remains of your soul. I am the broken and destroyed feelings you once had." Said the voice

"What?! No!" Sonic screamed

"Don't deny it Sonic!" Yelled the voice

"I don't know you!" Sonic screamed

"You do!" the voice thundered "And I will show you." it added

Suddenly, four figures appeared floating in the space. Sonic looked in horror at the figures. There appeared Sally, Antoine, Bunnie, and Rotor. They all had blood all over them, wounds bruises covered them. They were dead, their lifeless bodies hung in the space, not moving. Sonic bowed his head, put his hands on his eyes, and cried.

"No! No! I am not broken!" He yelled

"Yes you are! And you have known it for many years. How does it feel "Ghost"?"

Sonic looked up when the voice said the name "Ghost"

"I am not the "Ghost" anymore. I am Sonic!"

The voice let out a long and menacing laugh.

"You really believe that? Or is that what you want to believe. Don't deny it "Ghost", ever since you killed the first royal soldier in Mossflower, you have been nothing but a ghost."

"I-I don't know what you're talking about."

"You are dead inside, and you know it. Your guilt and regret fill your small, insignificant heart. You are a killer."

No! I have Amy, I have Clare, and I have Tails. I have not killed Amy or Tails, I am not a killer!"

"Don't hide it anymore, you may have hung up your cape, but inside, you are, and always will be, a ghost. You are a killer of the evil, and deliverer of the innocent. However, your mission is not done, there are still two Freedom Fighters left. And you and I both know what must be done to the Freedom Fighters. You cannot escape your destiny "Ghost"."

"NO, NEVER!"

"Too late, you cannot stop what was set in motion 20 years ago. Like a hero, your job is not finished. Get ready for the end." Said the dark voice, fading into the darkness

Sonic began to cry. He knew what the voice was saying. Suddenly, he heard another voice. It was a girl, Sonic looked up and saw something that truly terrified him. There, Sally, Rotor, Antoine, and Bunnie were all staring at him. Their eyes were dripping with blood and they all had sad faces.

"Sonic, why, why did you kill us?" Asked Sally

"I-I never wanted to." Sonic responded

"Why did you save Tails and May, but not us?" Asked Rotor

"I-I"

"Sonic, why did you kill Eggman?" Asked Bunnie

"I didn't know."

"Sonic, you are a ghost, aren't you?" Asked Antoine

"No, No I'm Not!" Sonic screamed

Suddenly, Sonic opened his eyes. He sat up quickly and gasped. He looked around frantically. He was in his room, in his bed. Sonic looked down and saw Amy laying in his arms sleeping. She was so peaceful when she slept. Sonic then realized he was sweating profusely and was panting loudly. Sonic put his hand on his chest. His heart was beating rapidly and he was shaking. Sonic thought about the nightmare he had just had. What did it all mean. He wasn't a killer, or a ghost. He was in a wheelchair, he didn't pose a threat to anybody. Sonic laid back down in bed. The storm was still raging outside. Suddenly, a burst of lighting lit up the room. In the corner, Sonic saw something that kept him awake the rest of the night. It was metal Sonic. He stood there, ominously looking at Sonic with his red robotic eyes. When the lighting ended. Metal Sonic disappeared. That night had taken a toll on both Amy and Sonic. They both could feel something huge about to happen that would change their lives forever.

**Hello Everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, I like this chapter, it has developed the plot a lot. I am trying to show that the actions Sonic took during "I remember" had more of an emotional toll than you all thought. Well, that is about it, so... please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, CYA!**


	4. Regrets

"**Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him saying 'Get justice for me from my adversary.'"**

**-Luke 18:3**

It was a wonderful scene in one of the many forests in the Acorn Kingdom. The sun shown down brightly on the ground. The full and brightly colored trees blocked much of the sun's rays. But streaks of light could be seen shining down, warming the small area they touched. The short grass rustled in the light breeze, making a soothing sound. Bushes of all sizes dotted the landscape, along with a few boulders. Woodland creatures jumped about, doing whatever they did. However, one or two rusting and broken robots could be seen, lying on the ground. They were Dr. Eggman's robots, left over from the years of war. But now, they served as homes for small rodents and birds. It was quite a peaceful sight. In the middle of this harmonious world, was a thin, lightly used, dirt path. Walking along that path, were three hedgehogs, well, two were walking. The other was being pushed in a wheelchair. The three hedgehogs were a family. A loving, caring, and peaceful family.

Sonic was being pushed along that path by Amy. Clare was following right behind them. They were going to visit Rob O' Hedge's house out in the middle of the woods. Although they had had a hectic night, they owed it to Rob to visit him. Sonic and Amy were whispering to each other while Clare took in the world around her. They were talking about what had happened the previous night. The events that occurred haunted them. Amy's vision and Sonic's nightmare shook them both to the core.

"I don't understand it Amy, I haven't felt like this since the day I killed them." Sonic whispered

"I know what you mean. Well, Rob and Mari-an are wise people, maybe they can help us." Amy commented

While her parents conversed about whatever they were talking about, Clare looked around in awe. It had been a while since she had gone out this far into the woods. How could anybody live out here? There were no shops, no schools, no food, nothing. But Sonic and Amy had told her that a family relative lived out here. Clare feared the worst about relatives. Her dad's parents were weird. His dad was a robot, and his mother was just crazy. However, she Clare had not met her mom's parents. Amy never wanted to talk about what happened to her parents. Clare just left it at that.

Suddenly, Clare bashed into her mother. She stepped back and shook her head.

"Sorry mom, why have we stopped?" Asked Clare

Amy turned around and smiled.

"We're here." she said pleasantly

Clare walked around and gazed upon the house that was in front of them.

"Still hasn't changed has it Amy." Sonic said

Clare was amazed by how cute the little cottage was. The small thatched cottage was white plaster with thick wooden beams through it. Flower pots in full bloom hung under its small windows. The stone fireplace was puffing out black smoke. A large pond was next to it which glimmered in the sunshine. A low stone fence surrounded the yard and garden of the house. A small wooden gate was in front of them as well. Sonic pushed the gate open and they all walked up to the door. Clare saw a small garden full of vegetables next to the path they followed to the door. They reached the door and Sonic knocked on it. A few seconds later, the thick wooden door opened. An aging teal hedgehog appeared. He wore a brown coat with a pulled down hood. He held a beer mug in his hand. He was quite jolly. His inviting eyes had stress marks next to them, and gray hairs were beginning to appear around his face. When he recognized who they were. The hedgehog's smile broadened. He was speechless. His face lit up and he placed the beer down on the table next to the door.

"Sonic, good to see ye my boy!" The hedgehog cried out in a jolly tone

"It's good to see you too Rob." Sonic greeted

The two hedgehogs exchanged a long hug. The two heroes were finally reunited after over 15 years of separation. It was a great day for both of them. They had fought so many battles together and had done so much in their short time as partners. Sonic and Rob had created a special bond with each other that could never be broken. When they were done hugging, Rob turned his gaze towards Amy. His mouth opened in awe at her beauty. He slowly walked up to her and looked up and down Amy's mature body. Amy giggled and curtseyed with her dress. He hugged her tightly. After a short while, they pulled apart.

"Oh dear cousin, what a joy it is to see you grow into a beautiful lady. You have made me proud." He greeted

Amy blushed.

"Thanks Rob, it's great to see you again as well." She said

Rob then looked over at Clare. He grinned and walked over to her. Clare was motionless, she didn't know what to think of this jolly old hedgehog. She had no time to think of how to greet him before he slowly took her hand. He bowed and kissed her hand lightly. Clare was embarrassed and was in shock. Rob slowly looked up at her, still bowing.

"Ah dear Clare, last time I laid eyes on you, you were just a babe. Now, you are a wonderful young lady." he said

"T-Thanks." she said nervously

Rob stood up and chuckled. He had a cheerful and booming laugh. He walked back up to Sonic and opened the door further.

"Well, I shouldn't be rude, come in, come in." he said eagerly

Amy pushed Sonic in and Clare followed behind. The interior was still the same. Warm and cozy. The smell of a wonderful stew and roasting chicken filled their nostrils. The dimly lit house made Clare feel like she had travel back in time.

"Sonic, do you fancy a beer?" Rob asked

"Of coarse." he responded

Rob left the room to go get a beer. Suddenly, another person entered the room. A female Echidna in a tattered old dress walked in. She too had gray hairs on her face and stress marks around her eyes. When she saw Amy, she ran over to her. They both hugged for a long time.

"Oh Amy, it's so good to see you." the Echidna said

"It's good t see you too Mari-an. How is Jon?" Amy asked

"He is good, he just joined the Royal Army a few months ago. He should be back in a few weeks." Mari-an said

Once they were done talking, Mari-an greeted Clare.

"Hello Clare, you probably don't recognize me. I'm Mari-an Rob's wife. We met when you were only a baby."

Clare smiled and shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you Mari-an." Che responded

Mari-an walked over to Sonic and Amy.

"Well, come into the kitchen you two. We can talk about everything." Mari-an said

They nodded and they all went into the kitchen. Clare stood by the door awkwardly. She looked down at the coat rack next to her. She saw something that made her curious. Two red shoes with pointed tips and a white strip going across them. Gold belt-buckles were on the sides of the white stripes. The shoes sat under the coat rack. Socks were stuffed into them as well. They were covered in dust and hardened mud. It appeared like they had not been touched in ages. Clare knelt down and was just about to pick them up when Mari-an yelled from the kitchen.

"Sparky, get down here, we have guests!" she yelled

Clare was shocked when she heard Sparky's name. He didn't live here did he? Clare began to get incredibly nervous, she was not prepared to see him. Suddenly, she heard foot steps coming from the staircase at the far end of the living room. Clare stood up and held her breath, waiting for the boy of her dreams to walk down the stairs. Clare silently screamed in her mind when she saw him appear from the staircase. He had his bow in his hand and had an annoyed look on his face.

"I'm coming Ma'am, I was just out hunti-" Sparky stopped when he saw Clare.

He stood there silently, gazing in shock at her unexpected arrival. They stood in front of each other for a long time. Taking in what they were seeing. Sparky slwoly began to walk forward. He stood in front of Clare and looked at her with a shocked expression.

"C-Clare... what are... you doing here?" he stuttered

Clare was too amazed to speak. Luckily, Mari-an spoke up and answered for her.

"Clare and her parents are here for dinner!" Mari-an yelled

Clare giggled and blushed.

"H-Hey there Sparky. W-What are you doing here?" she asked nervously

"I live here. I've always lived here." Sparky said nervously

Clare continued to giggle. She put her hands behind her and she slowly twirled her body back and forth. She was as excited as a child during Christmas. Sparky got annoyed by her giggling.

"What's so funny?" he asked

"The fact that you're here. It's great, I finally have someone to talk to." Clare responded

Sparky blushed and scratched his head.

"So..." he said

"So..." she said

"You want to go outside, we can talk. Plus it's nice outside and we don't have to hear the others talking." Sparky suggested

Clare's eyes lit up when he asked her. She quickly nodded. He smiled when she agreed.

"Just a second, let me go get my bow."

"Okay."

Sparky ran upstairs and within seconds, he was back. They both went outside and walked over a short rock wall which was at the edge of the clearing. They slowly walked over, taking in the fact that they were alone.

"How good of an archer are you?" Clare asked, trying to start a conversation

Sparky looked down at his bow.

"I'm the best. Well, Mr. Rob is the best, but someday I will be as good as him."

"Why do you call your dad Mr.?"

Sparky's face grew grim and he looked down in shame. Clare became worried that she had offended him.

"Well, he isn't my dad. He found me when I was an infant in Robotropolis. He says I was in a dumpster when he found me. He says he took me home and wanted to raise me as an archer." Sparky said, holding back tears.

Clare pitied him.

"I'm so sorry." she said softly

"meh, it could be worse, I could not have met you."

Sparky cringed when he heard himself say that cheesy flirt. He prayed that she wouldn't be creeped out by it. It was a desperate flirting attempt. Thankfully, Clare just giggled.

"I know, I make people's lives better." Clare joked

They finally reached the rock wall. Clare sat on the wall and Sparky stood near her. Clare stared at his bow for a second. It was made of a beautiful, strong, and healthy wood.

"How good are you at shooting that bow?" She asked

Sparky took out an arrow and pulled back his bow. He looked over at Clare and smiled.

"Pick a target." he said cheerfully

Clare searched the world around her. Looking for a target. The then spotted the perfect thing. A rotting old bird feeder was hanging from a tree across the huge clearing. Clare could barely see it, but she knew it was there.

"How about that bird feeder all the way over there." Clare pointed out

Sparky turned around and spotted the target. He pulled back the arrow. He aimed it at the microscopic bird feeder. He stood completely still, breathing in and out ever so slowly. Clare sat there silently, waiting to see if he would hit the target. Sparky then let go of the arrow. The arrow flew through the air at super speed. A few seconds later, they saw a small explosion of bird seed flying everywhere. He had hit the target.

"Awesome Sparky!" Clare cheered and clapped

Sparky's faced turned red with embarrassment. He couldn't help but grin.

"It's nothing." he said, trying to be humble.

Sparky sat on the rock wall next to Clare. From there, their friendship blossomed. They talked and laughed about everything. They flirted a bit as well. Clare and Sparky both enjoyed themselves in each others company. They were perfect for each other.

Sonic and Rob sat in the living room. Sonic was in his wheelchair, and Rob was on the couch. They both had beers in their hands. They had been talking and catching up for quite some time. Sonic then spotted Clare and Sparky outside, sitting next to each other on the rock wall. Sonic grew a scolding expression. He stopped paying attention to whatever Rob was talking about. He focused on the two outside talking. Rob noticed this and turned around, trying to see what Sonic was looking at. When he saw Sparky and Clare talking, he chuckled and turned back around.

"Oh Sonic, do you not approve of Sparky talking to your little girl?" Rob joked

"No I don't, I'm sorry but he's too reckless, cocky and careless. He isn't good enough for Clare."

Rob laughed out loud at what he said. Sonic was confused.

"What's so funny?" he asked in a serious tone

"Do you not see? Do you not see yourself in that young hedgehog? He is just like how you used to act. You may not remember, but you were once careless, cocky, and reckless."

"I know that Rob, that's why I don't like him. I broke Amy's heart more than once acting like that. I don't want Clare to ever be heart broken, that's why I don't approve of him."

"Ah my friend, if only you knew how much my young apprentice respects and loves your daughter. Ever since he saw her at school a few years ago, he has done nothing but talk about her."

"Yeah, Clare has done the same thing. Always talking to Amy about him and what he did that day. It's quite annoying."

Rob and Sonic both chuckled. Rob took another sip of his beer and placed it down on the table. He hunched over and looked at Sonic with a very serious stare.

"Now, I have noticed something. Is something bothering you Sonic, you don't seem to be acting the same, neither does Amy. Is everything alright?" Rob asked with a concerned tone

Sonic put down his beer and looked back up at Rob.

"Actually Rob, that is one reason why I came. I need to talk to you about something important." Sonic said

"Anything."

Sonic sighed and looked down at the stubs he once called legs.

"Do you ever get regrets about what you did when we fought the Freedom Fighters. Do you ever regret any of our actions. Because recently, I have been having nightmares about killing my friends." Sonic said, tearing up

Rob sat back and stared at the ground. He let out a long sigh as he thought. He had a serious face.

"Yes, yes I do. Every night, I see the faces of the soldiers I killed in my dreams. I see their faces, the faces of young, good and honest men. I see their mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, girlfriends, and families. I see them weeping over their graves. I do regret killing all those men, not for a second do I feel no remorse." Rob said, turning red with embarrassment.

"Well, you see, I had a nightmare last night. It was rather startling. I saw Rotor, Sally, Bunnie, and Antoine all dead. I heard a voice call out something. It said I am a ghost for killing them, but also a hero. And as a hero, it said I still had to kill two more Freedom Fighters."

Rob quickly looked over at Amy, who was cooking with Mari-an. He turned back and had a worried expression.

"What? No, she is your wife, and Tails is your life long friend. He is king, and he is a fair ruler, you have no reason to kill them."

"I know that!"Sonic quietly screamed

"That is strange, I have not felt any obligation to kill my cousin, or the king." Rob said

"Also, I saw Metal Sonic standing in the corner of our room. And that same night, Amy began to scream uncontrollably, she seemed like she saw a ghost. She became hysterical and began to say some very strange things. I'm very disturbed by what has been happening these past few days." Sonic said

Rob stared at the ground while Sonic was talking to him. He was thinking it all over. It was all very strange, and he could tell Sonic and Amy both desperately needed an explanation for all this.

Rob stood up and grabbed his beer.

"Well Sonic, we can discuss this later. I agree, it is a pressing issue, but it is time for dinner. Shall we get ready?"

Sonic nodded and wheeled over to the kitchen. Rob opened the door and called Sparky and Clare in. once they were all back inside. They prepared for dinner. They all brought out huge platters full of food to the long wooden table. Each dish was ornately designed and it all smelled delicious. The main dish was a massive turkey, which Sparky had killed. Finally, after a long preparation, the dinner was ready. Everybody sat down at the table. Rob sat at the head of it with Mari-an to his right. Amy sat to his left. Sonic sat next to Amy. Clare sat next to Mari-an and Sparky sat next to Clare. Once they all sat down, Rob bowed his head. Everybody else did as well. He said grace.

"Oh Lord we thank thee for this feast. We thank thee for family and friends. W thank thee for this wonderful world we dwell in. I come with humble wishes, asking to protect us from the dangers and sin that surround us. I ask that you keep temptation far from us, so that we may be beckons of light in this dark world. May you keep the demons that creep in sin from us, keep them at bay Lord. For you have made all things, and all things to you, shall they return. In the hopes that we may ascend to heaven we pray. In the name of the Holy Ghost, we say. Amen."

It was a dark room. There was only one tight hanging from the ceiling. It flickered as it swung back and forth. The smell of oil and grease filled the air. Under the light was a metal table. A map of the Acorn Kingdom was on it. It had the capital palace circled in red. Red arrows were pointing from the borders of the kingdom to key cities like Robotropolis and Knothole. Circles made of red surrounded other smaller cities. Such as Mossflower. Looking down on this map was a large, shaded figure. The figure's large metal arm was the only thing that could be seen. It's thick metal fingers tapped the metal table, making a pinging sound. One of its eyes glowed red. It was examining the map extensively. A small, dome shaped robot drove up and stopped at the side of the shaded figure. Its one red light flickered as it talked to the figure.

"Sir, the drones are loaded and ready for launch." it said in its flat, robotic voice

"Good, good. Have the land units been prepped and loaded?" it asked in a deep, robotic, yet strangely human voice.

"Yes sir, they are being loaded into the drop-ships now, and the tanks are fully loaded." the small robot reported

"Good, we roll out in 48 hours. Get my shuttle fueled and readied."

"Roger that sir."

The small robot drove away, into the darkness of seemingly empty room. Suddenly, the small blue bird that Sonic had met flew over and stood on the table. It chirped once, but then its black eyes turned red. It opened its beak and kept it open.

"Sir, should we take Mossflower first? It is the city he lives in." the bird said in its small robotic voice.

"No, we will take it all at once, not one at a time. What are your calculations for how long until we take the capital?" the figure asked

"With their current forces, about two weeks." he bird reported

the figure let out a deep and evil chuckle.

"Good, the Acorn Kingdom, and Mobius, will soon belong to me. I have dreamed of this moment ever since I first got the idea. Tomorrow, we will rain down hell on the Acorn Kingdom! Tomorrow, we will destroy what they have carefully built, and rebuilt! Tomorrow, sonic will finally meet his doom!" the figure bellowed, standing up and turning around.

As it was yelling all this. Millions of large red lights turned on. Millions of tall, black robots with miniguns for their right arms stood in front of the figure. They all had jetpacks and rocket launchers on their backs. Small antennae, stuck up from their stubby dome heads. The only identifications they had on them were white numbers on their right legs. They were an army of robots made to kill. This army was the largest ever seen on Mobius. They would descend on the Acorn Kingdom, and make it burn.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, this chapter is done and dusted. I hope you all enjoyed Sparky and Clare. There are three plots going on in one story. First, Sparky and Clare's romance that is not approved by her father. The second, this new villein that threatens the Acorn Kingdom. The third, Sonic's fight against himself. Well, I don't have a lot to say so... As always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow this story, and me! Until next time BYE! **


	5. Sparky

"**My salvation and my honor depend on God; He is my mighty rock, my refuge.**

**-Psalm 62:7**

It was such a perfect summer day in the city of Mossflower. The birds were out singing, filling the air with songs. Kids were playing in the park down the road. Animals of all types walked in different directions, minding their own business and being friendly to each other. The sun was shining down on this little city. The summer air was so pleasant, Sonic couldn't help but wag his tail a bit in his wheelchair. The clear sky made the day even better. But one house in particular, was especially happy. The small, two story house that lay on the side of a wide dirt road. A row of houses lined the road as well. The small house was painted light blue and had a small orange tree next to it. Roses lined the base of the house. Low hedges lined the perimeter of the property. In the freshly cut yard, there were three hedgehogs. One was blue, he had a torn ear, a scar through one eye, and sitting in a wheelchair because he had no legs. The second one was pink, she had long quills that reached her shoulders, a green dress with a pink apron, and a red hairband. The last one purple, she had short quills, a black mini skirt, and a light blue tank top. They were the most well known family in the city. Everybody left them alone and gave a cheerful smile to them as they walked by.

Sonic was hunched over, trying to delicately pull up the weeds that were beginning to grow in his rose bush. He had a little trouble however, he couldn't reach them. His wheelchair was too high up for him to reach the short weeds. Sonic got frustrated and sat up. He folded his arms and let out a loud exhale.

"Why can't the weeds grow higher so I can reach them?" he asked in an angered tone

Amy, who was tending to the hedges, looked over. She giggled and walked over to Sonic. He ruffled up his quills and knelt down.

"Don't worry, I got 'em. Why don't you go help Clare?" Amy said pleasantly

Sonic smirked and kissed Amy on the cheek. She smiled and giggled. Sonic put his arm around her shoulder and leaned his head over near her.

"I think she's good. Why don't we just stay here right now?" Sonic said softly

Amy chuckled and kissed Sonic on the cheek. She continued to work while he watched. A few minutes later, Clare opened the door and stepped outside. She was holding a platter with three glasses of yellow water on it. She walked over to Sonic and Amy. She knelt down next to Sonic and held the tray out.

"I made lemonade. Want some?" she asked

Sonic and Amy took their drinks. Clare stood up and began to drink her glass. The sweet, yet tart liquid refreshed them all. When Sonic was finished her looked at Clare with amazement.

Clare, that drink was fanta-" Sonic's words were interrupted by the sounds of low flying jets

The ground began to rumble. The sound of approaching jets was becoming louder and louder. Sonic looked up at the sky to see what was causing the noise. The sounds of rotors could also be heard in the background. The trees began to shake. Suddenly, a massive, gray helicopter flew by. Its twin rotors caused a violent mini wind storm to blow on the ground. It was an osprey, and it was trailing smoke. Royal air force symbols were painted on its sides. It seemed to have bullet holes lining its sides. The last thing that disturbed everyone, was the fact that it was losing altitude, fast. The osprey flew by and went out of view past the treeline. Seconds later, a massive fireball erupted in the forest behind the houses. The explosion shook the ground and Clare fell over. Sonic turned his chair around and slowly wheeled over to the gate to the house. He stared in the direction of the crash site with a curious stare. By now, the sounds of jet engines was deafening.

"Sonic, what's going on?!" screamed Amy over the noise

Sonic had no time to answer before three jets flew overhead. Two of them were black, delta shaped jets with massive jet engines in the back. They were almost completely flat, except for a bump on the front of them. A large red light was in the front of the jet. They flew by at speeds Sonic had never seen before from a jet. The third jet to fly over was huge. It was black as well, but it was rectangular. At had a pointed front, which had a red light in the front of it. Four jet engines were attached to four wings, which were placed at the coroners of the jet. It was massive, easily 50 feet long. It flew over the neighborhood, towards the city center. From there, the ship landed.

"What is that thing mom?" Clare asked nervously

Amy was speechless, she had no idea what this could be. Nobody did. Suddenly, a massive explosion came from the center of town. Screams could be heard as well. Gunfire and rocket noises rang out through the city. More explosions followed. The smell of gunpowder filled the air. Smoke and more explosions came from the city. Sonic slowly began to wheel away from the gate. Then, three figures appeared from the fires and smoke of the city. There were three giant robots walking down the street they lived on. The robots were massive, they had a huge mini-gun on their right arms. Their left arm was normal but seemed to have a flamethrower on their wrists. They had rocket launchers attached to their shoulders. Their heads were just small bumps with antennae on them. Large red lights were on the front of the small domes. Their massive metal feet stamped down, causing the earth to rumble every time the took a step. As they marched down the street, unopposed, they lay waste to the houses. Their massive mini0guns opened fire on the people and houses on both sides. People ran away, screaming. Sadly, they were all gunned down as they ran. The robots launched missiles from their shoulders. The houses were engulfed in flames and huge explosions. The air began to grow dark with smoke and the sun began to be blocked out. The robots were terrorizing the neighborhood, destroying anything that they saw. Screams from the alive, and dying could be heard.

"Get to the shelter." Sonic said quietly.

Sonic knew that someday, he might need to protect him and his family. He had built a small bomb-shelter under his house. It was fully stocked with food and supplies.

"What?" Amy asked

"Get to the shelter!" Sonic screamed

Amy took Clare's hand and they ran to the back of the house. Clare hesitated for a moment, looking at her dad, who was trying to back away.

"Dad!" She screamed as Amy dragged her away

Sonic turned his head around and looked at her with a scared look.

"Don't worry Clare, go with your mom!"

Sonic turned back around and wheeled forward. He knew what he had to do. He threw his arms in the air and waved them. He shouted, trying to get the robots' attention.

"Hey ugly, your mom was a can-opener!" he screamed

one of the robots turned and looked over to where Sonic was sitting. It spotted him and slowly began to walk forward. Its metal feet throwing up dirt as it walked.

"Objective located. Permission to open fire." the robot said in a deep robotic tone

"Burn him." a voice said over the radio

Suddenly, a massive missile launcher rose out of its shoulder. It locked on to Sonic and began to charge up. Sonic turned around as fast as he could and wheeled over to the bomb-shelter. But it was too late. The robot launched the missile. Sonic looked back just in time to see a bright fireball blossom behind him. The robot had miscalculated, the missile hit a meter away from Sonic. However, it was close enough that the shock-wave blew him from his chair. Sonic flew through the air from the explosion. For one brief moment, he was flying. The moment passed by in slow motion. Sonic could see everything, and it horrified him. Buildings were on fire or being blown up, people were being shot everywhere, and everything else was on fire. But for some reason, Sonic was somewhat enjoying this horrific scene. He felt the wind through his quills, the adrenalin pumping through his veins, and the threat of danger. It was a strange, yet familiar feeling. He had not experienced excitement like this for 20 years. However, his thoughts ended abruptly when he hit the ground. He lay there motionlessly. His eyes began to slowly close, he drifted into unconsciousness. The last thing he saw, was Amy opening up the bunker door and reaching for him. He heard a muffled scream from her.

"Sonic!"

"Impossible. How on earth did you hit that?" asked Rob in disbelief

Sparky shrugged and smirked.

"I don't know. Maybe it was the proper motivation." he joked

Rob chuckled and put his arm around Sparky's shoulders. They stared at the destroyed bird feeder across the clearing. They were standing where Sparky and Clare had been talking the other day.

"I was 20 before I acquired the skill to shoot that well. You are only 16." Rob exclaimed

Sparky chuckled.

"Well, I'm just the best." he said

Rob took his hand off Sparky and looked down.

"That you are. You are a much finer archer then I am. I shall start treating you like one." Rob said, turning to Sparky

Sparky looked up at the aging hedgehog. The teal elder was a compassionate old man. Sparky smiled and nodded in acknowledgment. Rob put his hand on Sparky's shoulder and they began to walk towards the house.

"Now, we need more food and other supplies. Will you please go to Mossflower and take what is on a list I made?" asked Rob as they entered the house.

"Sure." he replied

"Very well, here is 30 lekku, go and fetch the items on this list, then, if there is any more, spend it to your desire. Perhaps you may stay a while, entertain yourself, go meet Clare, but be home by 4:00."

Sparky nodded. Rob handed him the list. Sparky grabbed his bow and quiver and an empty brown sack. He took the list and left. This would be a good thing for Sparky, he could finally just go and do as he pleased.

As he was walking down the dirt path, Sparky began to think. How could he convince Sonic to let him date his daughter? Her mom seemed to be fine with her dating him, but he couldn't get past her dad. He was way too critical of him. Maybe, if he acted like a gentleman, which he wasn't, her dad would accept him. Sparky's thoughts were interrupted however with a strange noise. One he had never heard before. The chopping sounds of twin rotors. The sounds were coming from the sky, and were getting louder. In the background he could hear another sound he had never heard before. Jet engines. But the last sound he heard, he knew quite well. The sound of gunfire. Sparky stopped and looked up at the sky. He looked up just in time to see a gray osprey fly over his head. Machine gun fire came from its rear cargo door. It was shooting at something behind it. Moments later, two black delta shaped jets flew by. They were shooting at the osprey. Whatever these things were, they did not belong to the acorn kingdom. The the mysterious planes flew by, and the sounds began to fade away. Sparky scratched his head in wonder of what he had just seen.

"That was odd, Rob had told me stories of a helicopter like thing, but never of those two jets. It was almost like they-"

Sparky stopped his sentence, he realized something. Sparky dropped the sack and pulled out his bow. He began to sprint as fast as he could.

"Oh no! They're headed for Mossflower!" he yelled

Sparky sprinted through the woods. He dodged trees and rock as he ran. He jumped over small streams and animals, desperately trying to reach Mossflower. A thought in the back of his head was telling him they were heading for that city. After ten long minutes of running, Sparky reached the treeline. He fell to his knees and dropped his bow. He looked out at the city... or what was left of it. The entire city was engulfed in flames. Gunfire, screams, explosions, and metal feet deafened him. Tears began to form in his eyes as he looked out at the burning city. The once sprawling city was now flattened. Smoke rose from different spots, blocking out the sun. Black, rectangular like gets with red lights on the fronts of them were taking off and leaving. Whatever these black ships were, they were not friendly.

"No... no, no, no! This can't be happening!" Sparky screamed, putting his hands on his face.

He cried. For a long minute, Sparky cried. This was the first time he could remember crying. Eventually, Sparky stood up. He grabbed his bow and slowly pulled out an arrow. He loaded it and pulled it back slightly. He jogged down to the burning city. There was a mission. Find Clare. He needed to find Clare, dead or alive. She needed to be pulled out of that city. Sparky finally reached the border of the city. Smoke blinded his eyes and made him cough. He pulled his blue bandana over his mouth and continued to slowly walk down the dirt street. It was a desolate place. The sounds of burning houses and exploding building filled the air. A swing creaked back and forth, making an unsettling noise. Sparky slowly crept down the dirt street, turning and aiming at every shadow. He had no idea who was behind all this. Suddenly, a machine gun opened fire. Sparky ran to the side of the road and hid behind a fence. He slowly poked his head over the fence to see what the gun was shooting at. He was relived when he saw that the machine gun was not shooting at him. Instead, it was aiming at a house. When Sparky saw what was shooting, his jaw dropped. Three massive black robots were standing around what appeared to be the entrance to a bomb-shelter. The robots had jet-packs on and missile launchers on their shoulders. Their small, dome shaped heads had short antennae sticking out of them. A eerie red glow came from the front of their heads. Sparky examined the robots for a long time, taking in what he was seeing. He then noticed they were all shooting at the entrance to this bunker. Someone was in there who they wanted to kill. Sparky swallowed hard. He needed a way to make them turn around. An idea popped into his head. He grabbed a nearby stone. He stood up and chucked it at one of the robots. The rock hit the robot in the back. All three of them turned around and faced Sparky. They opened fire on him. Sparky sprinted away from the fence, towards the corner of a house. Once he reached the house, he pulled an arrow back in his bow. He needed to do this as fast as he could if he wanted to live. He let out an exhale and turned the corner. In record time, he aimed at the red light on the head of one of the robots. He let go of the arrow. The small, but deadly arrow flew through the air. It pierced the glass of the light. The light flickered and died. The robot began to flinch and spark. It stopped shooting and fell over. Its massive body made a loud cruching sound as it hit the earth.

"Suck it!" Sparky yelled in victory

He did the same maneuver again on the other two robots. Within a minute, the other two were destroyed as well. Sparky walked away from the corner and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He huffed and smirked. He walked over to the robots and examined them. They were unlike anything he had ever seen before. Sparky had never seen a working robot before, only the rusting shells that dotted the landscape. The black robots only seemed to have one distinction between them. White numbers. Sparky noticed something odd. These robots were new. One said E-000000000003, another said E-000000000002, and the last said E-000000000005. This startled Sparky. That was a lot of zeroes before the numbers. That meant there were a hell of a lot more of them. Billions of them. Sparky stood up from examining the robots and walked over to the door of the bomb-shelter. The house it was under was all but flattened. It was burning, and seemed to be the most destroyed of all the houses, like it was a main target or something.

"Well, time to see whose inside." Sparky said to himself

He slowly walked down the steep concrete stairs and stood in front of the door. He pulled down his scarf and pounded on the thick metal door. There was no response, he knocked again. There was no response, he was about to knock again, but the sound of a heavy metal lock came from inside. Sparky stood back and waited to see who was inside. Sparky was shocked by who he saw. He saw a pink hedgehog in a long green dress. She had a pink apron on and her quills reached her shoulders. She was holding a massive rad and yellow hammer above her head. She appeared like she was about to swing it. Sparky jumped back in surprise. So did the pink hedgehog. They both looked at each other in disbelief.

"Mrs. Rose?!" Sparky cried

"Sparky?!" Amy cried

Amy dropped her hammer and hugged Sparky. Her tight hug almost suffocated him. Eventually, she let go of him. She pulled him inside the bunker and shut the door. The lock automatically locked the door. The bunker was small and dark. A single hanging light barely lit up the room. The walls had shelves stocked with food and water on them. Three beds ran along one wall. A small sink and toilet were next to the beds. A table and three chairs were in the middle of the small concrete bunker. Sparky slowly walked forward. Sonic wheeled up to him in a different wheelchair. He had a thankful, but somewhat angered expression.

"Those robots' missiles were just about to break through. Thanks for coming when you did. What are you doing here?" he asked in disbelief.

"I was sent by Rob to pick up food. But I found all this. What's happening, where's Clare?" Asked Sparky in a serious tone

Sonic's face turned angry and he looked down and sighed.

"I don't know what is going on, but we need to get to King Tails soon. Oh, and Clare is laying on the bed over there."

Sparky ran over to the bed where Clare was laying. He skidded to her side and knelt next to her head. He put his hand on her shoulder and slowly rubbed it. Clare had her eyes closed, but was crying.

"Clare, Clare. It's me, Sparky." He whispered

Clare slowly opened her bloodshot eyes. They were full of fear and tears. But when she realized who she was staring at, she sprang up. She sat up and gasped. She grabbed Sparky and hugged him as hard as she could.

"Oh Sparky, you're here! Thank the emeralds you're safe. How did you get here?" she asked, still hugging him

Sparky just gasped for air. Clare let go of him and he fell back. He put his hand on his chest and tried to catch his breath. Just then, Sonic wheeled up to them and stopped their moment.

"That's not the point right now. We need to get out of the city and get to Tails as fast as possible." he said seriously

Sparky nodded and stood up. He stretched hand out and helped Clare get out of the bed. They all went over to the door. Amy pulled out her hammer and readied it. Sparky had no idea how she could just make a hammer materialize in her hand, but he didn't ask. Sonic wheeled over to Sparky.

"Sparky, how strong are you?" he asked

"Pretty strong." Sparky said, blushing

Clare did when he talked about how strong he was.

"Well, I need you to carry me and my chair. I will only be a problem in the rubble. I can't go out there in my wheelchair. But it does fold up. Please, I need you right now." Sonic begged

Sparky didn't like this. He wouldn't be able to shoot his bow if he was carrying Sonic. Sparky looked over at Clare. She was scared. He knew she loved her dad, and he loved her. Sparky had no other choice. He pulled his bow around his body and knelt down.

"Alright." he said, spreading out his arms

Sonic lifted himself out of the chair and hopped into Sparky's arms. Clare folded up his wheelchair and carried it. They all walked over to Amy at the door and stood there.

"Let's go." Amy said

Amy opened the door of the bunker. The heat from the fires made them all sweat instantly. The cold of the bunker was filled with heat.

"Well, let's go." Amy said, running outside

They all followed her up the stairs to the scorched yard. The entire city was now rubble and was on fire. The heat was unbearable. The group of survivors ran through the yard to the open street. They walked along the silent road. Suddenly, the sounds of twin helicopter rotors filled the air. The group looked around desperately, searching for the source of the sounds. They all looked up. In the sky was a gray osprey. It flew over head with a searchlight that searched the area. Everybody began screaming and waving their hands. Thankfully, the osprey saw the commotion and flew over to them. It hovered over them for a minute, and then began to descend. The wind form the helicopter was overpowering. Sparky had never felt wind that powerful before. The osprey landed on the ground. The troop bay door slowly opened. A squirrel in a green jump-suit ran out to meet them. He had a white pilot's helmet on with the black visor down, covering his eyes. Without a word, he carefully took Sonic from Sparky's hands and brought him inside. He lay Sonic on a stretcher and ran back out.

"You all are all that's left! We are on bingo fuel and need to leave! Get in!" the crewman yelled

Everybody ran into the osprey and sat down on the seats that lined the red lit troop bay. The crewman ran over to the gun port near the cockpit and manned the turret. The door slowly closed as the helicopter took off. Amy sat next to Sonic and began to talk to him. Sparky and Clare sat next to each other. Sparky looked out the window of the helicopter and looked out over the once beautiful city. Smoke and fire rose up from the buildings. Dead bodies were strewn across the streets. It was horrifying. Sparky had never seen such destruction in his life.

"Sparky." Sonic called out

he looked over at Sonic who was sitting up, staring at him. He had Amy's arm around his shoulder. He had a thankful expression.

"Thank you, thanks for saving us."

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, it begins, the main plot begins, and so, things will pick up. Despite what you are reading now, this story is about Sonic, not Sparky. Anyway, I realized something while writing this. I live 3 different lives. **

**The rule following kid who is an officer who my parents and the other officers know me as.**

**The perverted rapper/bully who my friends know me as**

**The compassionate, loving, pipsqueak that writes fanfictions who you guys know me as.**

**That is horrible. Anyway, as always please leave a review or PM, and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, SEE YA LATER!**


	6. Metal

"**The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life."**

**-Galatians 6:8**

"Damn it!" Tails yelled, slamming his fist on the table

King Tails, the ruler of the Acorn Kingdom for 20 years, was for the first time in his rule, being challenged. There had never been an enemy like this during his rule. There had only been small rebels occasionally who wanted the Acorn family back in the throne. But they were always put down quickly. This, this was different. This wasn't a rebel group, these were robots. They had a purpose, but to destroy the kingdom. Nobody had yet taken responsibility for this sudden and brutal attack. Whoever they were, they were well trained in the art of war. The attack had been abrupt, unknown, and without warning. The mysterious forces had taken every major city near the border of the kingdom. From Knothole to Mossflower, all the cities were gone. It was a troubling time. The royal army was not prepared for such an attack, especially an attack of this scale.

Tails looked down at the holographic map. It was being displayed on a large metal table. He was with the generals of the military. They all were in a dark room with a single light above them. This small dark room was the "War room". Filing cabinets lined the walls. The glow of the table lit up Tails' angered face. He looked down at the map. It was a grim sight. It was a map of the Acorn Kingdom. It had all the major cities on it and the capital. But something was different. There was a very thick red space that surrounded the capital. The red area was the amount of land that had been lost in the invasion. From the border, all they way, past Mossflower, and just past Robotropolis. It was sad. So much land had been lost so quickly. The capital, which was in the middle of the Kingdom, was surrounded, cut off from the rest of the kingdom. Refugees from all over were flooding in on ospreys and other aircraft. Tails stared at the distance between the enemy and the capital's walls. 259 miles. It may seem like a lot, but that land could be taken quickly. Thankfully, his army was able to stop the robots' ruthless advance across the country. Most of the kingdom on the map was red after only one day of this invasion. Tails looked up at one of his generals, a black chubby rat. He had metals all over his chest.

"General Rodes, what's the number of forces we have?" he asked

"We have three infantry divisions, two armored units, the nineteenth air cav squadron, and four spec ops squads." the rat reported

Tails nodded and looked over at another general. He was a badger. He had a shaved head and a scar going down his face.

"Major Hooper, what's the ETA on that last flight of ospreys?"

"Thirty minutes sir. If they don't run into enemy aircraft."

Tails sighed. He needed that last flight of ospreys to come in. They were carrying the last crates of ammunition that his troops desperately needed. Tails looked up and turned around. His long red cape flew around with him as he spun around. He stormed out of the room. The metal sliding door opened with a loud whooshing sound. It closed behind him. Tails walked over and rested his back against a wall. He put his hands over his face and sighed. He slowly slid to the floor and began to cry. His kingdom was doomed, and he knew it. He needed a miracle and fast. However, nothing seemed to be able to make this situation better. Suddenly, a squirrel in an oversized lab coat and glasses came running up to him. He was carrying loads of files with the red words "Classified" on them. He had a desperate look on his face. He approached the king and slid to a halt. He stood in front of Tails, panting. Tails took his hands off his face and slowly stood up. He looked at the tired young squirrel with a questioning look.

"What is it Taylor?" Tails asked

Taylor continued to pant. He then looked down at the folders and pulled out one. He handed it to Tails, never saying a word, just panting. Tails took the file and looked at it. It was an old file, one that had not been touched in a long time. It had a title on it that shook Tails deeply. "Robotic limb research". Tails knew about this file. It was the project to produce robotic limbs for veterans and others. Giving Sonic his legs back was the primary reason for this project to start. The project had started two years after the events of the "Dark times". Since then, Tails and his top scientists had been working tirelessly to make this dream a reality. But Tails, the master technician, had recently given up and had stopped working on it and gave it over to the other scientists. He had more pressing matters than this. Tails looked up at the squirrel with a confused stare.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" he asked

Taylor handed him another file. It was new and crisp. It had the words "Metal" printed in red on it. It was a thin folder. Tails opened the file and looked inside. Only one sheet of paper was in it. It was full of words, front and back. Tails read over the long report. At first, his expression was tired and lazy. But as he read it, his expression changed. He became interested, then shocked. When he was finished reading the report, he stood there motionless. He stared at the file in disbelief. His mouth gaped open. He looked up at Taylor, who had a fearful face. The news in the report was the most important report he had ever read in his life. It changed everything.

"But it's still in testing." Tails said in disbelief.

"Sir, that's not the point. The point is, it's now possible. But we need a test subject." Taylor commented

Tails put his hand on his chin and looked at the ground. He was thinking long and hard about what he had just read. Taylor stood there awkwardly while Tails thought. After a long and silent minute, he looked up at Taylor and smiled.

"Good work. Take this back to the lab. I need to go oversee a shipment soon. Go back and get the lab and start the reverse engineering." Tails ordered, handing him the files

Taylor nodded and ran off to the lab. Tails watched him run off and smirked, he saw himself in that young squirrel. He then turned around and walked down one of the long hallways of the royal palace. He still lived in the royal palace that Elias had built many years ago. Tails walked down the main hallway, back to his room. As he walked down the massive red colored hallway, he looked around. The hallway was lined with thick black marble columns and had a long white rug going down it. In between the columns, stands with glass boxes on to of them lined the hallway. Inside the glass boxes, were priceless artifacts. They were remnants of the "Dark times". One of the boxes held one of Amy's many Piko Piko hammers. Another held a fake chaos emerald that Tails had made. Another held Sally's mini-computer. Another held Antoine's sabers. Another held Dr. Eggman's broken glasses. Tails looked at all of them fondly. He remembered those days. He secretly longed for the days where he and Sonic would go out and fight Eggman without a care in the world. Amy would always follow them and Knuckles would just smash stuff. They were simpler times. But it was complicated now, and boring. He was king, Sonic was a cripple, Amy was his wife, and Knuckles was still protecting the Master Emerald. Tails stopped at the last, and largest case. It was a metal stand inside the case. And hanging on that stand, was the "Ghost's" black hood and cape. It was torn at the bottom and had dried blood stains on it. The stand had a head shape on it, which had the hood pulled over it. Around the lower half of that head was the "Ghost's" scarf. It too was torn and had dried blood on it. Tails stopped and stared at the case, tears welling up in his eyes. The days of the "Ghost" were over. But even after 20 years, he could still remember them like they were yesterday. The days of fighting his best friend, and not knowing it, pained Tails. Now, Sonic was most likely dead. Mossflower had been hit the worst in the invasion, and he had received reports that only one family had survived the attack. Tails had grieved over the news already, but he had a job to do. He had to lead his broken Kingdom.

As Tails was looking at the case, someone approached him. She was a beautiful woman. Her long orange dress dragged behind her. Her small tiara showed that she was the queen. He long rabbit ears hung down, resting on her shoulders. She silently walked up and stood next to Tails. She slowly took his hand and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Didn't you say he saved you once Cream?" Tails said softly, still looking at the case

"Yes he did. But I never saw him. He disappeared as fast as he rescued me." she said

Tails put his arm around her waist and looked down at her. He had a sad expression.

"Cream, do you think he is still alive? It's very unlikely, and I can't believe it myself. I don't think I have fully realized it yet. I want to be sad, but I have so much to worry about right now that I-" Tails' words were stopped

Cream reached over and kissed him. After a long minute, she broke away. Tails stared at her in disbelief. She had a scolding expression.

"Don't talk like that. I think he is just fine. In fact, I know he is. You can't get rid of him that easy. Just you wait." she said in her soft voice

"I guess." he said sadly

Cream kissed him on the cheek looked over Tails' shoulder. She spotted a squirrel running down the hallway. He was dressed in a green jumpsuit. He was wearing a white pilot's helmet. His black visor was still down. He ran up to the couple and stood in front of them. Tails turned and faced him. The pilot saluted and raised his visor, revealing his tired brown eyes.

"What is it lieutenant?" Asked Tails

"Sir, he's here. We found him in Mossflower along with his family and another hedgehog." the pilot reported

Tails was shocked by the news. He quickly grabbed the pilot's shoulders and stared at him intensely.

"Show me!" he yelled

The pilot nodded quickly and turned around. He ran towards the airfield that had been set up outside the palace. Tails and Cream followed him. After a long run, they made it to the airfield. The once open space was now filled with aircraft. Ospreys and other fighter jets were parked all over the field. Boxes of ammunition and supplies were stacked everywhere. Military crews ran about, doing their jobs. Wounded soldiers poured in from the front lines. A large tent had been set up as a temporary field hospital. Tails was in awe of this huge operation. He was completely unaware of how big the airfield had become. However, his thoughts were interrupted when the pilot tapped his shoulder and beckoned them to follow him. After a long walk, Tails and Cream finally reached the osprey that the pilot had come from. When Tails saw who were standing just outside the osprey's troop bay, his jaw dropped. Tears of joy filled his eyes. A small group was getting scanned by doctors for radiation poisoning. The doctors left when they saw Tails. He stared at the group in disbelief. The group was made up of a black and white hedgehog, a purple hedgehog, a pink hedgehog, and a blue hedgehog. He had made it. Sonic and his family had made it out of Mossflower alive. Tails was speechless, but Cream wasn't.

"Amy!" Cream yelled in joy, running over to her old friend.

The group turned around and saw who was running towards them. Amy screamed in joy and ran up to Cream. They hugged each other for a long time.

"Oh Amy, I'm so glad you're safe!" Cream cried

"Cream, I haven't seen you in forever." Amy said

Tails and Sonic chuckled at their wives. Sonic then looked over at Tails and wheeled over to Tails and stared up at him. They both had joyful expressions, it had been so long since they had seen each other. Tails fell to his knees and hugged Sonic.

"Look at you big man!" Sonic yelled happily

"You tough son of a bitch. Don't worry me like that again." Tails said, holding back tears

They let go and Tails stood back up.

"You know me, always making people uncomfortable."

"Do that again and I will have to put you in jail. How did you get out safely?" Tails asked

Sonic turned his head and looked at Sparky and Clare, who were laughing at Cream and Amy.

"Sparky, get over here!" Sonic called gruffly

Sparky stopped laughing abruptly, lost his grin, and ran over to Sonic and Tails. He looked at Tails and dropped his jaw in amazement. He snapped to attention.

"You can thank Sparky here. This little annoyance saved me and my family's life." Sonic said

Tails took Sparky's hand and shook it.

"Thank you for your service Sparky. I am forever in your debt." Tails said

Sparky was speechless. He was in the presence of the king of the kingdom. He knew his manners were horrible, dealing with royalty was not his strong-suit.

"Th-thank you... sir" Sparky said nervously

Tails chuckled at him.

"Alright, go back and make sure Clare isn't getting into trouble." Sonic said huskily

Sparky nodded quickly and ran back over to Clare. Sonic and Tails watched him as he ran. Tails laughed.

"I'm guessing you don't like him that much." he said jokingly

Sonic grunted.

"I don't like him, he's too cocky." he said

Tails laughed.

"Doesn't that remind you of someone Sonic?" Tails joked

"Shut up man. He's nothing like me." Sonic said in an irritated voice, folding his arms

Tails rose an eyebrow and smirked. Sonic looked around in embarrassment.

"Well it looks like you haven't changed much have you." Sonic said, finally looking up at Tails

"Not much. Some with you. Hey, why don't we go for a trip? I need to talk to you about some things. Especially in light of what has happened." Tails said

Sonic nodded and they went away from the rest of the group. They continued over to the main courtyard of the palace. They talked like old friends the entire way there. They talked about everything that had happened to them over the past years. Tails was very interested in what family life was like. Sonic told him everything and Tails told what it was like being king. The two friends had not met since Tails' marriage to Cream. That was 16 years ago. It had taken a long time for him to work up the courage to ask Cream out. They continued to talk until the reached the atrium of the courtyard. Eventually, they reached the courtyard. The same courtyard where the Freedom Fighters were killed and Elias was put down. The space still looked the same. Rose bushes lined the perimeter, brown gravel paths intersected in the middle of the yard. Except for one thing had changed. In the middle of the courtyard was a massive bronze statue. It was a statue of a hedgehog who was standing up straight. He wore a long cape with a hood over his head. A scarf covered his lower face. His hands were concealed under the cape. He had a menacing look in his eyes. At the base of the statue was a gold plaque. It read:

"A Ghost never dies. He stays in our souls forever."

Sonic looked at the statue in awe. He had not seen it before. He wheeled up close to it and slowly ran his fingers over the gold plaque. Tears began to well up in his eyes. He looked up and spotted the legs of the "Ghost". Those were his old legs in that statue. Tails walked up and stood behind him. He put his hand on Sonic's shoulder and sighed.

"I miss those things." Sonic said, patting the stubs he called legs.

Tails was quiet. He thought long about telling Sonic about the robotic limbs. It was a heavy burden for Tails. If he kept the robotic legs from his friend, he would never forgive himself. If he told his friend about them, they could run into problems and not be able to give him the legs. Sonic would cry for days if his hopes were built up that high, just to be torn down. Tails decided to take a chance. He desperately needed Sonic in the fight against this enemy. His troops were outnumbered, surrounded, and low on ammunition, he needed a hero. Sonic was that answer. Sonic had beaten enemies his entire life. He could handle this.

"Sonic, I need to tell you something." Tails said quietly

Sonic looked up at him cheerfully.

"Anything buddy." he replied

"We've done it." Tails said quickly

Sonic turned confused and turned his chair around and faced Tails.

"What do you mean?" he asked

"We've been working on robotic limbs for years. It is much more complex than you think. We have been working on these limbs for you primarily."

Sonic got an excited face.

"You have?!" he asked eagerly

"But we've run into problems. Your speed. Your speed is too fast, your legs move too fast for any robotic limb to react to. However, after a decades of work, we made a breakthrough. Metal Sonic. We were scavenging his parts one day and realized something. He moved as fast, if not faster, than you. His legs were able to keep up with you. His legs could keep up with the jet engine attached to him. I have to admit, Metal Sonic was the only robot Dr. Eggman ever made which was too complex for me to understand. Where I am getting at here is the fact that... we can now attach you to Metal Sonic's legs. His legs were intact and undamaged. He have figured out how to attach you to Metal Sonic's legs. You can get your speed back, and then some. I have the file in the lab, if you want to read it for yourself."

Sonic was shaken to his bones by the news. It had been so long, he had given up on getting his legs back. But now, it was here. The ability to get his legs back was here. He could finally relive his glory days, and fight this threat to the kingdom. Sonic had never before felt so happy. There were no down sides to it. He could get rid of his limiting wheelchair and get a pair of Metal Sonic's legs. It was ironic that the legs once belonged to Metal Sonic, but that didn't bother him. Why not get new legs? Why not? Was the only question he asked. Sonic put his hands over his mouth and began to cry with joy.

"You... you can do that?" he asked in disbelief.

Tails nodded slowly with a serious look. Sonic looked down and thought. His face grew disappointed.

"I will need to talk to Amy about it." he said "She will have an opinion on this. I can't keep this from her."

"I understand. It is experimental however, there may be bugs in it. But the pros, out-weigh the cons here." Tails said

Sonic was sold on the idea. He was joyous and danced in his chair. Tails laughed at how silly his friend was acting.

"If you do accept my offer, you need to fight this new enemy for us. We can't win without you." Tails said, turning the situation serious again

"Right, don't worry. I can't think of doing anything else with my new legs." Sonic said

The two friends turned around and began heading back to interior of the palace. They were out to go talk to Amy and get her thoughts. As they were leaving, Sonic stopped and turned his head around and stared at the statue. It stared back at him with a deadly stare. Sonic stared at it for a short time before he noticed something strange. In the distance, something was different. There was a shadowy figure on the top of the roof of a building. Sonic stared harder at it. As he stared, he became terrified. It was Metal Sonic! He was staring at Sonic with a ghostly stare. His red robotic eyes glowed and burned into Sonic's soul. His arms were folded as well. He appeared to be moving slightly. His shoulders were moving up and down, as if he was laughing. Sonic was greatly disturbed by this. Suddenly, he felt something brush against his torn ear. He began shaking, but didn't move his head.

"You haven't fulfilled your promise." a dark, evil voice whispered

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, this chapter was short, but it needs to be. Anyway, the plot is really starting to pick up the pace. The new enemy is now fighting the Acorn Kingdom, Sparky and Clare are getting it on, and Sonic is getting his legs. What will happen?! I am a little disappointed. This story is not as good as I wanted it to be. Sorry but I am really only writing this story because I needed to make a sequel to "I remember". I will continue this story, but I am not having an absolutely great time writing it like I did my last story. But that is it. Now, I don't have a lot to talk about here so I will end this announcement now. So, as always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, C YA!**


	7. Past

"**Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. "**

**-Hebrews 13:5**

Sonic and Tails stood at the door of the guest bedroom. They both stared at the door with hesitant gazes. They had been standing there for a minute now. They both were afraid of what was on the other side of that wooden door. They were afraid of an opinion, Amy's opinion. They had the chance to give Sonic his legs back, but they needed to know if Amy would approve. She might not, or she might. Sonic and Tails both didn't know why they were afraid of her opinion, but they did. Sonic looked up at Tails. Tails sighed and looked down at Sonic. He let a nervous grin appear and chuckled.

"Well, this is it." Tails said

Sonic chuckled as well and looked up.

"Yeah... Hey, we're not getting any younger, let's go." he said ecclesiastically

"After all these years, you're still impatient. Wow." Tails said

"Hey, people don't change easily." Sonic said

"Maybe." tails said, reaching for the door-knob

Tails slowly opened the door and peered inside. The small room was quite pleasant. He looked around, trying to find Amy. At last he saw Amy and Clare sitting at the foot of the large double-bed. Amy was behind Clare, brushing her short, spiked quills. They were talking cheerfully and laughing. Tails smiled a bit and coughed, trying to get noticed. Amy and Clare looked over at him. Amy smiled and stopped brushing Clare's quills.

"Hey Tails, what's up?" she asked cheerfully

"Are we interrupting anything?" he asked politely

"Not at all, come in." Amy said, waving her arm for them to enter

Tails stepped back and opened the door wider. Sonic wheeled himself in and Tails followed behind. HE closed the door behind him softly. They walked up and stood near Amy. Sonic looked over at Clare, who was confused.

"Clare, go find Cream. We need to talk about something important." Sonic said calmly

Clare's face grew worried. She nodded and slowly stood up. She silently exited the room and left the old friends to themselves. After she had left, Sonic and Tails loked over at Amy. She had a confused expression and sat nervously.

"What's wrong?" she asked nervously

Sonic wheeled closer to Amy and gently took her hand. He gazed into her eyes and let a small grin appear.

"Amy, Tails and his scientists have done it. They've made me new legs." Sonic said in an excited tone

Amy was completely confused by this news. She stared at both of them with an inquiring look.

"What do you mean?" She asked

"It means, we have found a way to give Sonic his legs back. He can walk again, and run. Isn't that great?" Tails said

"How? How are you able to do that?" she asked

"Metal Sonic's legs. Metal Sonic's legs were the only ones fast enough to run at my speed. Now that they salvaged his legs, they can attach them on me. I can go out and fight this new threat as well. But, like everything, I need to know your opinion first. Please tell me you want to go through with this." Sonic said

Amy was silent. She stared out the window on the other wall for a long time. Sonic and Tails looked at each other nervously. Amy was thinking, thinking about something very disturbing. Metal Sonic. The robot that had kidnapped her when she was young. The robot that brought her and Sonic together. The robot that nearly killed him. She also thought of something else. She thought of the fortune teller's ominous words. She said he would not be the same after he got his legs. Finally, she remembered that Sonic had said he had seen Metal Sonic in their bedroom that horrific night. She knew all of these things were signs. Signs of what was to come, what to expect. Now it was all clear to her. What Sonic and Tails were talking about would set in motion everything that they had been warned about. Amy quickly looked at Sonic with an angered face.

"No." she said flatly

Sonic was taken aback by her response.

"W-what do you mean no? Amy, this is what we've been waiting for." he said in disbelief

Amy folded her arms.

"No Sonic. Don't you see? Everything that has been happening to you and me these past few days are leading to this moment. Seeing Metal Sonic in our room, your nightmare, my nightmare, the fortune teller. It all points to this." she said, desperately trying to get him to understand

Sonic's face grew irritated. Tails slowly backed away and stood at the door. He would need to leave fast if something happened.

"Amy, that stuff was just dreams and hallucinations. I am still the same as I was when we were teenagers. I can handle all this, trust me."

"You can't just strap on some legs after everything that has happened in the past 20 years and expect everything to be the same as they were. You are not the same, not anymore. You need me and Clare, you said it yourself."

"But Amy, I can do this. I can control my emotions, and I sure as hell can defeat this enemy. But I need my legs back."

"You're not listening to me! She screamed "Sonic, you promised me a long time ago that you would never leave me. I kept that rose you gave me to remind me of that. Now you are saying you want to leave Clare and I to go on an adventure. I am beginning to think that you did leave me, a long time ago."

Tears began to well up in Amy's eyes. Sonic was stunned by her argument.

"Amy, I have to do this. Whether you like it or not, I have to do this. You are living in the past Amy, you need to see that I will be able to do this."

"YOU ARE THE ONE LIVING IN THE PAST!" Amy scream "You still want to believe you are living the glory days of fighting Eggman. Don't you see that this will be your doom. From either a robot or yourself."

"That's not true."

"Yes it is true, and you know it. Sonic, go ahead, go ahead and put on those legs. They are clearly more important to you than your family. Go out and die, see if I care. Maybe Sally was right. Maybe you really don't care about me."

Those last words shook Sonic. Sally had told Amy that? But this did nothing to quell his anger.

"You know what? You are my problem. You've been holding me back all these years. You probably want me in this wheelchair because I need you in it. I going to get these legs, and I don't need your help anymore!" Sonic yelled

Amy was now openly crying. She had her hands on her face and sobbed. Sonic looked at her crying. He instantly regretted everything he had just said. Why would he say something like that? He would never hurt her feelings like that. Sonic tried to put his hand on her shoulder. But when his arm got close, she smacked it away. Sonic looked at her for a few more seconds. He then turned around around and wheeled towards Tails. Tails looked at him with a shocked expression, he had never seen them fight like that before. Sonic looked up at him with a sad face.

"Come on, we've got work to do." Sonic said quietly

"That we do." Tails said in a low tone

Tails slowly opened the door and they left the room with Amy still sobbing.

Sonic and Tails walked silently to the laboratory. They didn't say a word the entire way there. Eventually, they made it to the laboratory. The door was a thick metal door with a key-pad next to it. Tails pressed in a code and the door slid open. The smell of chemicals and gases filled Sonic's nose. They entered the room. It was bright inside, the lights lit up the room to the point of blindness. Everything was white. The floor and walls were white. The tables and robotic tools were all white. There were no windows in the massive room. Scientists scurried about, diligently doing their jobs. In the center of the room was a white table. It was thin and had a pillow on one side. Robotic arms and a large light hung over it. Small tables with tools were around it. On one table, there were two blue robotic legs. Sonic was amazed by this impressive room. Tails laughed at Sonic's reaction.

"Impressive, isn't it? Come on, we need to get down to business." Tails said, walking forward

Sonic followed behind him to the long white table. He sat in front of the table and looked at it. He looked over at Tails, who was switching out his royal cape for a white lab-coat. He took off his small crown and put on goggles. He then picked up one of Metal Sonic's legs and approached Sonic. He showed him the leg. The metal leg had blue plating on it. The red foot still had scrape marks on it. Sonic looked at the leg in awe.

"Now, we are going to attach the legs to you. Just jump up on that table and we will give you a sedative." Tails said calmly

Sonic winked and gave a thumbs up. He jumped up on the table and laid down. He centered himself and stared up at the ceiling. Tails and two other scientists surrounded the table. Tails leaned over and looked at Sonic.

"You ready?" Tails asked

"I was born ready." Sonic replied

"When you wake up, you will have new legs." Tails said

"Sweet."

Tails took out a face mask and put it over Sonic's face. A sweet gas filled the mask that made Sonic want to sleep. He closed his eyes and fell to sleep.

While he was sleeping, Sonic had a strange experience. The entire time he was asleep, Sonic heard laughing. It was a very deep, sinister laugh. It continued on for the entire time he was sleeping. Occasionally he would hear whispers. They were high pitched and evil sounding. They kept on whispering the same thing.

"Not the same... Not the same... Not the same..."

His entire body ached. Sonic slowly began to regain consciousness. He moaned a little and turned his head. His legs felt like they were on fire. Sonic slowly opened his eyes. All he saw was white. Everything was blurred as well. After he blinked a few times to focus his eyes. Eventually, they focused in. He stared at the white room. He turned his head, trying to find Tails. After a small search, he found his friend. He was twisting a screwdriver on something just out of Sonic's view. He had motor oil and burn marks all over his lab coat and goggles covered his eyes. Sonic rose his head a little and looked at his friend.

"H-hey Tails. How'd it go?" He asked in a groggy tone

Tails jumped in surprise when he heard Sonic. He looked over at him and smiled.

"Why don't you see for yourself." Tails said cheerfully

Sonic slowly rose up and looked at his legs. What he saw brought the biggest smile to his face. He had legs. The robotic legs were attached to his thighs and were stable. A white metal band surrounded the area where the real legs and the robotic legs met. Sonic put his hands over his mouth and gasped. Tears began to well up in his eyes. He slowly reached forward. He gently placed his hand on the robotic limb. He ran his hand up and down the blue metal plating. He couldn't feel his fingers on the legs. He looked over at Tails and laughed. Tails chuckled as well.

"Test them out." Tails said

Sonic tried something that he had not done for a long time. He moved his foot. He moved it up and down. The sound of hydraulics and small motors came from the foot. Sonic laughed out loud in joy. He then tried something else. He moved his knee. Again, the sound of hydraulics and motors came from the leg. He moved the leg up and down.

"T-they work!" Sonic cried

Tails put a hand on Sonic's shoulder and patted it.

"Yes indeed. Now, go out and test them out. Be back in the lab at 5:00 sharp. Understood?" Tails ordered

"Got it." Sonic said

He spun around and jumped off the table. He landed on his feet and looked around in amazement. He laughed and looked down at his new feet in amazement. He then looked up and took his first step in 20 years. He lifted his right foot and then placed it down. Sonic stumbled a little, but corrected himself. He took another step, then another, then another. Eventually he was walking, Sonic was walking! He looked over at Tails who had a huge smile on his face. A tear fell down his cheek.

"What are you waiting for? Run!" Tails yelled

Sonic smiled and got into a running stance. He then sprinted out the door at legendary speed. Sonic sprinted out of the laboratory towards the entrance of the palace. He sprinted down the long hallways, past the relics, past the throne room, past the soldiers, past the airfield, past everything. He was running, and nothing could stop him. Sonic sprinted out to the wilderness, going out to test out his new legs. The scenery changed from a royal palace, to a peaceful forest. Birds chirped in the trees, the breeze blew through the air. The sun shown down on the forest, warming it. Everything was in complete harmony. In the middle of this forest, a blew blur sprinted through it. The blue blur was back. The fastest thing alive was running again. Sonic had tears of joy in his eyes as he ran. Once he reached an open field, he ran straight. As he was running, he looked down at his new feet. They worked perfectly, moving as fast as his old legs could. They worked seamlessly with his thighs as he ran. They jumped when he wanted them to jump, they stopped when he wanted them to stop, they walked when he wanted them to walk, and they ran when he wanted them to run. Sonic looked back up from his feet. He watched as the wold flew by him. For the first time, he felt the wind against his face. The air past over his aerodynamic body. The feeling of wind rushing through his fur sent shivers down his spine. As he ran through the open field, he felt the air getting thinner around him. He saw water vapor begin to make a cone around him. A few seconds later, a loud boom shook the earth. Sonic laughed at it. He had created a sonic boom, he was running super sonic.

"YAHOO!" He yelled as he ran

Sonic continued to sprint through the large open field. Suddenly, he saw that the ground had an edge. He quickly stopped running and skidded to a halt. He skidded, kicking up dirt as he tried to stop. EH saw that he was quickly approaching a cliff edge. Luckily, he stopped just inches away from the cliff. He stumbled a bit, regaining his balance. Sonic stopped and stood at the edge of the cliff. He looked down at his legs. The red feet were glowing orange. The smell of burning dirt wafted up from under his feet. The dirt turned to clay under his feet.

"Ha, too fast for ya?" he said, bending down, looking at his feet

Sonic stood back up and gazed at the scenery beyond the cliff. He saw the entire capital city. He saw the high rising buildings, the magnificent white capital building. The city was full of activity. He smirked and looked out farther. In the distance, he saw the royal palace. The tall, cone shaped center building rose above the trees. It was build by Elias to show his power. Sonic hated that palace, but now that Tails was in charge, nothing could make it become a sign of tyranny again. Sonic then remembered who was in that castle. All of his remaining friends. The few that were not eliminated or had disappeared during the "Dark Times". Most of his friends were gone. Shadow was out on another planet, Rouge had disappeared after being caught by the royal army while Elias was a tyrant, Silver and Blaze were in the future, Knuckles was still guarding the master emerald, and the Chaotix team was disavowed when the Freedom Fighters became evil. They were all gone, but only a few friends were still here. Tails the king, Cream the queen, Rob O' Hedge the archer, and Amy his wife.

Amy... Sonic let a tear fall when he thought of her. He had hurt her again. He had promised himself he would never do that again. After he had yelled at her all those years ago, he had promised never to fight her. But now, he had hurt her again. That was something he could never live down, it would stay with him. He needed a way to make things right.

"Amy, I'm sorry." he said quietly to himself

Suddenly, something brushed against his torn ear. It was not hostile and cold like the other times and in his dreams. It felt pleasant, soothing, and friendly. He turned his head to see what had caused the feeling. There was noting there. Just air. However, something caught his eye. A couple hundred feet away, was a single rose bush. Sonic could have sworn it had not been there a second ago. But there was something different about this rose bush. It was shining. Sonic slowly turned and walked towards it. The birds had stopped chirping, only the sound of his robotic legs could be heard. Sonic slowly approached the bush. He stopped in front of it and looked down. The bush almost had no roses on it. Except for two. There were two roses on it. One was blue, was short and stubby. The other was pink, and was slightly taller than the blue rose. But it was strange. The roses' stocks were intertwined. They wrapped around each other. It was the most beautiful thing Sonic had ever seen in nature.

"Amazing." he whispered

"Take it... it is for her." whispered a soft female voice

Sonic looked around in confusion. He had no idea where the strange whisper came from, or who it was from. He quickly shook it off and continued to gaze at the roses. Weather or not the voice was real or not did not matter. The roses were beautiful. Sonic instantly knew that this would be a perfect gift for Amy. Sonic gently took the bottom of the stems and broke them off. He held the roses in his hand. He held them close to him and closed his eyes.

"I will make things right. I will ask for forgiveness from Amy. I will fight this new threat. I will end all this and bring peace. I will show the world I am still the fastest thing alive. I will do whatever is necessary to bring peace. When I make promises, I keep them." Sonic vowed

Amy walked down one of the many hallways of the royal palace. The once beautiful palace was now a military fort. Soldiers stood around, talking. The sound of helicopters and jets were always present. The new soldiers were dressing in black combat shirts and pants with built in knee-pads. They wore black tactical vests with pouches all over them. They had on black helmets, which had devices and cords all over them. They all seemed to have the same weapons. Short guns with scopes. The congregation of soldiers, all of them different. Some were squirrels, others were hedgehogs, others were rabbits, and others were wolves. They all had depressed faces. They knew they were losing to this new enemy. However, none of them had heard about Sonic yet.

Sonic... She let a tear fall when she thought of him. He had promised himself he would never do that again. After he had yelled at her all those years ago, he had promised never to fight her. But now, he had hurt her again. That was something she knew he could never live down, she knew it would stay with him. But after everything that had happened in the past few days, nothing was certain.

Amy continued down the hallway, over tot he guest room. She slowly opened the door and walked in. She looked around. The room was no different. But then, something caught her eye. On Amy's side of the bed, were two roses. They rested on the pillow. Amy quickly walked over to the roses and sat on the bed. She gazed at the two roses in awe. The blue and pink roses' stocks were wrapped around each other. They were stunning. Amy slowly and gently picked up the roses. She smelled them. They smelled sweet, but then something changed. The smell changed. Every time she sniffed it, the smell changed. It went from sweet, to bitter, to nasty, to sweet, to to intoxicating, and finally, to repulsive.

"What are these things?" she asked herself.

Amy then noticed there was a note still on the pillow. Amy gently put down the roses and picked up the note she read it.

"Amy, my friend, my lover, my wife, my joy. Words cannot express how sorry I am for hurting you. It is something that haunts me. I found these two roses like this while running. I will not ask for your forgiveness because I can't forgive myself. But take this to know that I will always love you. I'm sorry. Please, I beg you not to leave me. You and Clare are all I have left.

Love, Sonikuu"

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, I said that minds would be blown in this chapter. Sadly, while I was thinking of how this chapter would play out, I decided to move that scene to the next chapter. Anyway, I enjoyed writing this chapter. I really got into the zone while writing about Sonic running. So, as always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, stay frosty.**


	8. Fight

"**My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, as a father the son He delights in."**

**-Proverbs 3:11-12**

Tails and Sonic were in the white laboratory. It was completely quiet, nobody else was there. Monitors displaying statistics and data surrounded them. Sonic was sitting on the white table where he had had his surgery. Tails was carefully inspecting and tuning his legs. Sonic had returned from his run a couple hours ago. It was near the end of the night and the sun was going to rise soon. It had been a tiring day for both of them. Sonic desperately needed to sleep but Tails made him stay up to run tests on his new legs. Tails had opened up one of the panels of Sonic's legs and was working on the wiring. Sonic watched with tired eyes as his friend worked. He looked up at one of the monitors. It read out a stat of his legs. His legs had reached a temperature of 130 degrees Fahrenheit while he was running.

"I'm surprised the wiring didn't melt while you were running." Tails commented

Sonic chuckled.

"Yeah, luckily I didn't feel a thing." he responded

Tails didn't look up from his work.

"You should have, you don't have any nerve endings on the bottom of your feet. And that's a big problem."

Sonic looked down with a puzzled face.

"Why's that?"

"Because both your fake and real legs could begin to melt and you would never know it until it was too late." Tails said flatly

Sonic turned pale. The idea of that happening scared him.

"How can I prevent that?" he asked concerned

"Don't run for long periods of time, check up with me regularly, and keep these things from getting banged up." he said

Tails finished his work and closed the metal panel. He wiped off his gloves and stood up. He had a happy expression.

"You're all patched up. You want to go get a drin-" Tails was interrupted by something

All the lights shut off in the lab. All the monitors turned off and so did all the machinery. Tails and Sonic spun their heads around, wondering what just happened. Tails' face grew grim and worried. He ran over to a radio that was on one of the table.

"Status report. Are we under attack?" he cried

"No sir, the power grid has been hacked though, we're working on it now." replied the voice through the radio

"Damn." Tails said, throwing the radio on the floor

He walked back over to Sonic and put his hands on his hips.

"How?" Tails said to himself

Sonic shrugged his shoulders. Suddenly, all the monitors turned on. Their screens were all white and the sound of a loud beep filled the room. Tails spun around and looked at the white screens. After a few seconds, the beeping stopped. The screens changed. In the middle of the white screens, a symbol appeared. It was a black skull with wrenches crossed under the skull. It resembled a pirate flag. It stayed like this for one minute. After that minute a voice came on. It was a very deep, distorted voice, probably changed by a computer program.

"Greetings my lord. Or do you prefer King Tails? As you know, I am the source of all this chaos that has fallen upon your weak kingdom. Now, I have showed you first hand the destructive power of my war machine. It is the largest army this planet has, and will ever see. Over one billion robots, including fighters, dropships, ground units, and naval units. Resistance is futile. I do not want to destroy your kingdom, it is quite beautiful. However, I do want to own it. In light of this, I am willing to hold negotiations for your surrender today as soon as the sun rises. I will be holding them at the remains of Mossflower city. Meet me there with no troops, or else I will step up my assault and burn your capital by the end of the week. Your choice old friend."

The monitors turned off after the message was over. A few seconds later, all power was restored to the palace. The lab and monitors lit up and the machinery came back to life. Sonic and Tails looked at each other with serious faces.

"You know that's a trap, don't you?" Sonic asked

"Yeah, I know, and it's also a diversion. He is quite clever. He wants me to know it's a trap. I would then send troops, weakening our lines somewhere else, giving him an opening for an attack. The best thing we can do is not react." Tails said

Sonic nodded and stood up. I can go and fight the forces that are there.

"Give me a day and the threat will be gone." he said

"Good idea, you can finally join the fight." Tails responded

"It's a little cold out. You got anything to keep me warm?" Sonic asked

Tails nodded and left the room. A few minutes later, he reappeared holding something, something brown. He handed it to Sonic. He unraveled the gift and held it out. It was a brown cape. Sonic grinend and put on the cloak. The cloak cape down to his knees and covered his back and covered his arms, much like his old black hood and cape.

"All I could find, sorry." Tails said

"Are you kidding? This is perfect." Sonic said

Sonic made sure his cloak was right, checked his robotic feet and gave a thumbs up. He was just about to run off when the lab door slid open. Amy ran in, Clare and Sparky followed behind her. Amy ran up and hugged Sonic. Sonic was surprised, but slowly embraced the hug. Amy began to cry on his shoulder. He put his hand on her head and slowly rubbed it.

"Please don't go and fight. I need you here, we need you here." She sobbed

Sonic gently pushed her away and looked into her sad green eyes. He let a pitiful smile appear.

"Amy, I know you do. But they need me more out there, fighting. I'm sorry I have to do this, but I have to. Clare, Sparky, and everyone else needs a better future than this. I need to do this." he said softly

Amy kissed him for a long time. Eventually, she pulled away, still crying. She slowly stepped back and went next to Clare, who was staring at Sonic nervously. She had never seen him standing before. She had only seen him in his wheelchair. Clare slowly approached him. He was grinning and beckoned her over. Clare slowly walked up and stood in front of him. She had tears in her eyes.

"D-daddy. Y-you're going to fight?" she asked, about to cry

Sonic hugged her.

"Yes I am. I'm sorry, but it's what I do." he said quietly

Clare pulled back and looked down at his legs. Sonic chuckled at her amazement.

"You know this is the first time I've run since before you were born?" he said playfully

Clare quickly looked up at him and began to cry.

"Please be safe dad." she begged

"You know I will." sonic said, kissing her forehead

Clare let go and ran over to Amy, they were both crying. Sonic looked over at Sparky who was standing there quietly. He had an emotionless face. He nodded.

"Good luck sir." he said

"Don't hurt Clare's feelings while I'm gone, or ever. Understand?" Sonic said harshly

Sparky's face turned confused. But he nodded anyway. Sonic turned over to Tails and nodded.

"I'll be back before dinner." Sonic said

Sonic turned around and sprinted out the door. He ran as fast as he could towards Mossflower, his old home. This was his first time fighting in years. He would need to relearn everything very quickly. As he ran, he thought about the final thing the voice had said. "Old friend." what did that mean?

Sonic stopped at the treeline of the forest. He looked out over the desolate wasteland that was once Mossflower. Rubble and debris filled the landscape. Nothing was left, every building was flattened and every tree was obliterated. Small fires still dotted the city. Sonic looked at it in pain. That had once been a lovely, sprawling city. No it was a shell of its former self. It was not the same. Not anymore. Sonic slowly walked down to the city streets. No birds were singing. It was completely quiet. The only noise was the sound of his robotic legs moving. He stopped in the middle of a cracked street. Buildings on both sides were gone. The city was empty, nothing moved or made a sound. There were no robots anywhere, no ambush either. Sonic rubbed his nose and put his hand on his hip.

"Hmm... strange." he said to himself

Suddenly, the sound of loud, heavy robotic feet filled the air. The ground shook with every large step the massive body took. The noise was coming from everywhere. Sonic looked around frantically, searching for the source of the sounds. He saw nothing. However, Sonic began to notice that the treeline had red dots appearing int eh shadows. Sonic followed the line of red dots. They circled the entire city. There were hundreds of them as well. As the dots approached, they exited the treeline. Sonic was stunned by the amount of black robots that were closing in on him. They all circled around him, the gap getting smaller every second. Sonic watched with an angered face as the robots closed in. They stopped marching and left him only a ten foot gap of space.

"Orders from the director. Destroy all life forms." said one of the robots in a deep, robotic tone.

All the robots aimed their miniguns at Sonic. The machine guns' multiple barrels began to spin faster and faster. They opened fire on him. Sonic jumped up into the air, dodging the deadly gunfire. As he jumped, the robots followed him, still shooting. They shot their own and a couple fell to the ground. Sonic landed on one of them and stat there. All the robots around him shot at him and the robot. Sonic jumped again. The robots again shot one of their own. Sonic curled up into a ball and shot himself at one robot. He flew at it and tore through it, leaving a hole in its body. He skidded on the ground and went under one robot. All the robots continued to fire at him, not caring if they killed their own. Sonic jumped up and began to run, kicking robots to the sides as he ran. It did not hurt to kick metal since his feet were metal now too. He ran up to one of the last robots of the group and jumped onto its shoulder. He grabbed the rocket launcher and ripped it off. He kicked it into a group of robots. A massive fireball blossomed when it hit the group. Metal shards flew everywhere, peppering and destroying nearby robots.

"Too easy." Sonic said to himself

He jumped off the robot he was on and kicked it towards the crowd of robots. It landed and crushed a couple. He ran up to the group and jumped into the air. He landed on one robot and grabbed its minigun arm, which was still shooting. He aimed it at the others and sprayed the robots with gunfire. The robots were falling down as fast as they appeared. After the minigun had run out of ammo, Sonic jumped into the air. He curled up and dropped on the robot he had been on. It blew up when he crushed it. Sonic stood in the smoke for a second. He was catching his breath. Sweat poured down his face, his brown cloak already was beginning to get tears in it. His metal legs' blue and red paint was scratched off in some places. He looked around as the smoke began to clear. The hundreds of robots were now only a scattered few. The ground was piled high with dead robots and empty bullet-shell casings. The smoke had now cleared. The few remaining robots opened fire on him. Sonic sprinted towards them. One by one, he knocked them down and destroyed them.

Sonic stood over the last robot that had fallen. It had a massive hole through the middle of it, courtesy of a homing attack from him. Sonic looked down at the red light that was still flickering on its head. Sparks flew out of the robot and failing hydraulics came form its arms. He looked down at the robot in disgust. He knelt down and stared into the robot's "eye". He was hoping someone was watching on the other end of that camera. Sonic tapped the glass and smirked.

"Whoever you are who is behind all this, I'm gonna give you a warning. I'm the one and only Sonic the Hedgehog. I've been gone for a while but now I'm back and I will defend this kingdom as long as I live. So if you think you can win, think again." Sonic said vengefully

He stood up and smashed the robot's "eye" with his metal foot. Sonic looked around. The wasteland was now a scrap yard. Dead robots piled everywhere and rubble could still be seen. Sonic nodded and checked his brown cloak. Tails was right, it was getting cold out here. Sonic could see his breath in the air. Suddenly, Sonic thought of something. His face turned grim and he began to pant.

"Rob." He whispered to himself

Sonic sprinted out of the empty battlefield. He ran into the forest as fast as he could. He traveled towards the small cottage that was in the middle of the woods. He needed to know if Rob was okay. Sonic's thoughts raced through his head. Thoughts of pain and sorrow. His fear and emotions made him run faster. Eventually, he made it to the clearing. He skidded to a halt. Sonic looked out at the clearing in fear. However, when he looked out, he was relieved. The cottage was the same. Nothing appeared to be wrong. Sonic let out a sigh of relief. Suddenly, he smelled something, something burning. The smell was coming from his feet. He looked down and was shocked by what he saw. His metal feet were glowing orange. Sonic felt the heat from the metal hitting the flesh of his upper thighs. He picked a flower that was near his feet and slowly touched his feet with it. As soon as the flower touched the foot, it burst into flames. The flower burned up in his hand and disappeared.

"Whoa." he said to himself

Sonic looked up. He needed to wait for his legs to cool down. He spotted the pond that was next to the cottage. He walked over to it, leaving foot shaped burn makes in the ground as he walked. He reached the pond and placed one of his feet in it. A huge cloud of steam and hissing sounds came from the pond. After a few more seconds, Sonic pulled out the foot, it was cool now. He put in the second leg and repeated the process. Just as Sonic pulled his other foot out of the pond, he heard the sound of a heavy wooden door opening. Before he had time to react, shouting come from behind him.

"Sit yourself down on the ground now! Speak your name and business!" Yelled someone with a thick English accent.

Sonic slowly turned around and looked at who had yelled at him. He saw Rob standing there with his bow pulled back and an arrow loaded. Tears were in his aging, bloodshot eyes. Sonic looked at him with a joyful face.

"Rob it's just me. Don't worry." Sonic said

Rob's face turned to amazement and he lowered his bow. His jaw dropped and slowly walked over to him. For the first time in 20 years, they were looking eye level at each other. They stared at each other for a long time. Then, without warning, Rob dropped his bow and hugged Sonic tightly. He began to cry. Sonic was surprised, but embraced the hug. They hugged for a long time.

"Sonic my friend. You have legs! What a miracle!" Rob cried

Sonic pulled away and they both let go.

"Yeah, I got my legs back." he replied

"But how can this be?" Rob asked in disbelief.

Sonic chuckled.

"You can thank Tails for these. I am lucky to have him as a friend."

Rob looked down and sniffled.

"That you are." he said quietly

"What's wrong?" Sonic asked

Rob looked up at the sky and sniffled again.

"We... we just received a letter a few hours ago. Jon, our son, died in battle today. He died fighting out on a patrol mission. His squad was ambushed. Mari-an and I have been crying since." Rob said, bursting into tears

He dropped his bow and put his hands on his face and sobbed. Sonic felt horrible, and furious. Those robots had hurt Jon. They had hurt family, now it was time to pay. Sonic walked over and put a hand on Rob's shoulder. Rob looked up, still crying.

"Rob, come with me. We can fight these new enemies and bring peace back to the kingdom. Just like old times. We can do this together, I have a score to settle with this new threat and you have to avenge your son. Let's go." Sonic said seriously

Rob went quiet for a long time.

"Sonic, I can't. I'm sorry but I can't. Look at me. I'm too old for that. I am over 40 years old. I cannot shoot a bow as well as I could. I am sorry, but I must refuse your offer. You are still young and can fight just as good as you could. Also, revenge is not the wisest thing my friend. Revenge leads to hate and death. I cannot fight for revenge, that will bring the death of me. Mari-an and I have already lost so much. We lost Sparky, and now Jon. She needs me, and I need her. I am sorry, I cannot go with you. But you, you can go, you can fight, and you can win. Go please Sonic. Fight again for what is right."

Sonic was shocked by his small speech. He couldn't believe that Rob wouldn't fight with him. But he understood what Rob meant. This was not his fight, this was Sonic's.

"Alright then." Sonic said. "stay safe man, and don't leave your property. If you need anything, try and tell me. I will always be here for you." Sonic said

Rob nodded and picked up his bow. He stuck out his hand.

"Believe in the Ghost." Rob said

Sonic took his hand and shook it.

"Believe in the Ghost."

(It is said that during the dark times. Villagers would say this when their spirits were down. It was often followed by a quiet song which was soon forgotten when the "Ghost" was said to be dead. But the phrase stayed.)

Sonic gave his friend one last nod and turned around. His brown cloak flew around as well. He began walking back to the forest, heading for the capital. When he reached the clearing, Sonic turned his head back and saw Rob walking inside. He smirked and sighed.

"I'll see you later buddy." he whispered to himself

Rob opened the door and walked inside. He placed his bow and quiver down next to the coat hanger and was about to take off his muddy shoes. As he looked down at the ground, he saw Sonic's old red and white shoes. They still had dried dirt on them. Dust turned the white bands gray and the gold buckles were still shining. Rob let a tear fall when he saw the shoes. He looked back up just as he heard the sound of Sonic running away. He turned around and saw leaves violently flying as he ran away. Sonic looked back down at the shoes.

"The darkness in his heart still lurks there, waiting. When he is finally ready, and his heart is once again pure. These shoes will be returned." Rob promised himself

**Hello everybody! papapa here to give you an update. I hope you all enjoyed it and liked the action in it. Sonic is beginning the fight! BOOYAA! Well, this story is not nearly as popular as "I remember" was, but this is going along nicely. I can't believe the sequel is going to be longer, and more complex than the original story. But hey, I am getting better. Anyway, I am now taking honors english so i hope my writing will improve over time during this story. If you guys who are currently writing need any help, just ask. I am pretty good and if you need help, talk to me. So, as always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, Believe in the Ghost!**


	9. Robotropolis

"**Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."**

**-John 15:13**

Sparky and Clare were sitting at the base of the statue of the "Ghost". They were sitting in the main courtyard, talking and having a good time. The sun was shining brightly, white pedals floated through the air. The smell of roses filled their noses. It was completely peaceful, it made them both forget that there was a war going on. The two hedgehogs talked, laughed, and chatted about everything. Sparky was fixing the string on his bow while they were talking. Clare watched him delicately work with the bow.

"So, you think the war will take a long time?" Clare asked

Sparky didn't talk, he continued working with the bow, making sure it was tight. His expression turned grim and he didn't look up at her either. Clare waited a long time for him to respond. Eventually, he looked up at her and responded.

"I didn't believe it would end any time soon when I was rescuing you guys. But since your dad is fighting now, I think it will be over very soon." Sparky said seriously

Clare leaned over and rested her head on his shoulder. His blue scarf felt like a pillow. She could still smell smoke and sweat on him. He still hadn't showered since they had returned. Sparky smiled and put an arm around her and pulled her closer. Clare snuggled closer and purred. Sparky chuckled and put down his bow.

"We're together forever, right Sparks?" Clare asked quietly

A long silence followed. Sparky thought carefully about the words he said next. He had never actually liked a girl before, this was all very new to him. The cheerleaders at school didn't prepare him for this. Sparky rested his head over her head.

"I will do anything to keep you safe Clare, don't worry." He said softly

Clare was loving every second of this moment. Nothing could tear them apart, nothing. Suddenly, the sound of swearing and yelling come from one of the doors of the courtyard. Sparky quickly picked up his bow. He let go of Clare and stood up. He looked back at her. She had a disappointed expression.

"Wait here." He ordered, pulling an arrow out of his quiver.

Sparky ran over to the door. His worst fear was that something was attacking the palace. The robots could have broken through, he was incredibly fearful of that. He stopped at the door and slowly opened it. He peered around the atrium. What Sparky saw both relieved him, and scared him. Walking down the hallway, was a squad of special forces troops. The squirrels, rabbits, and otters were wearing black tactical vests with gear all over them. They all were wearing black uniforms and black baseball hats on. Massive black headsets were over their hats. They carried assault rifles and one had a rocket launder on his back. Sparky was staring in awe at the squad of spec ops troops. They all walked past him, talking, yelling, and cursing. They didn't even notice him. They walked by, towards the airfield. Sparky looked at them until they left his view. Clare walked up and put her hand on his shoulder. He turned around and looked at her. He put his bow and arrow away.

"What was it?" she asked

Before he could reply, someone walked up behind Sparky. Clare's jaw dropped when she saw who it was.

"Your highness!" Clare cried, doing a small curtsy.

Sparky spun around and looked up at King Tails, who was standing over him. He had a cheerful smile and chuckled at the teenagers' shock.

"What are you two doing?" he asked pleasantly

Sparky was speechless.

"W-we were just... going to... uh..." The words finally came to him. "About to see those special operations troops leave." he said

Clare looked at him with a surprised look. Tails' expression was confused, but soon turned cheerful. He put his arm around Sparky's shoulders.

"Come on you two. Let's go see off the troops." Tails said directing Sparky down the hallway.

Clare followed the two down the hallway. Sparky squirmed out of Tails' grip and walked next to Clare. They all walked down the hallway, not saying anything. They reached the door to the airfield and stopped. Tails pushed open the door and a blinding light shown on them. Sparky and Clare hid their eyes for a second, adjusting to the sun. One their vision cleared, Clare and Sparky were in awe at what they saw. Clare slowly took Sparky's hand, she was scared at what she saw. Out over the large field, hundreds of Ospreys and hovering fighter jets were parked on the grass. Thousands of boxes and gear were laying out on the field. Pilots and ground crews ran off in different directions. The sounds of radios, yelling, and engines filled their ears. The smell of jet fuel, oil, and empty shell casings filled their noses. The airfield had grown since he had last been out there. A massive counter-force must be mounting. Sparky had never seen a force of this scale before. But he knew that no matter how many vehicles and soldiers the Acorn kingdom had, this strange enemy had twice as much.

"Impressive, isn't it?" tails said, looking down at Sparky

"Y-yes sir." he responded

"Look, there are the spec ops team you saw." Tails said, pointing to an osprey.

Sparky looked at Tails with a questioning look. Tails chuckled.

"Well, lets go meet them." Tails said

As they all walked over to the osprey. This osprey however, was different. It was black. A shark mouth was painted on its side and a naked, girl hedgehog was painted laying on her back on the side of the helicopter. Open gun ports were on the sides of its fuselage. The troop-bay door was open, revealing the red lit bay. Outside of the troop-bay was a five-man team of special forces operators were standing there, checking their gear. Tails, Sparky and Amy walked over just in time to hear the team leader shout.

"Alright helljumpers, are we happy?!" yelled the squirrel

All the troops turned and looked at the leader.

"Hell yes!" They shouted in unison

One of the soldiers noticed Tails and his guest walking over and froze.

"Commander on deck!" he yelled

The entire team snapped to attention and went quiet. Tails walked over and looked at the leader.

"Captain Spears, I expect that osprey to be full when you and your whole team to get back." Tails said seriously

"Don't worry sir, Robotropolis is just a walk in the park." The leader replied

Sparky cocked his head quickly when he heard the name Robotropolis. That was the city he had been born in, that was where Rob O' Hedge had found him. That city carried something in his heart that he couldn't explain. Maybe it was the fact that it was where he was born, or the fact that he had hatred for it for his suffering, or maybe it was because it was the land where a good paying job was always needed. Whatever the reason, Sparky felt a strange sense of duty to go to that city. It was the same feeling he got when he saw the drop-ships heading towards Mossflower. It was the sense of duty and need for justice. Whatever the reason, he needed to go with them.

Sparky slowly let go of Clare's hand and approached the two men. He butted in front of Tails and stared up at the leader with determined eyes.

"I'm going with you." He declared

Tails and Clare were speechless. The spec ops team snickered and whispered to each other. The team leader was surprised by the young hedgehog's willingness to fight. After a few seconds, the leader regained his composure.

"Uh... kid, this is a covert spec ops mission into hostile territory. Not a place for a sixteen year old to be wondering around in." the leader mocked

Sparky filled with rage. Nobody called him a kid. Sparky walked closer and stared at the leader with furious eyes.

"Nobody calls me a kid. Got that? And I can do everything you guys can do, but better. I can go with you and show you." Sparky growled

Before the leader could respond, Tails walked over and put his hand on his shoulder.

"You better listen to this young hedgehog captain. He is the best archer in Mobius, he was trained by the "Hunter" himself. He was also born in Robotropolis, he may be a very valuable asset." Tails said

Clare was standing there, still in shock at what was happening. The team leader looked Sparky over and nodded in approval.

"Alight, he can come. But he stays behind me at all times." he said gruffly

Sparky nodded. Tails let go of Sparky's shoulder.

"Good." Tails said

Just then, one of the pilots walked down the ramp. He put up three fingers and walked back into the cockpit. The team grabbed their gear and entered the gunship. Sparky walked over to the ramp and was about to step onto it. Suddenly, a hand grabbed his. He turned around to see who was stopping him. It was Clare. She had tears in her eyes and was whimpering. Sparky was confused by what was happening.

"Clare what is i-"

Before Sparky had time to finish his question, Clare had pulled him in and hugged him tightly. He was shocked by her hug, but eventually embraced it. A yell of approval came from the troops, who were sitting down watching. Clare began to cry onto his scarf.

"Please don't go Sparky. If something happened to you, I couldn't find live with myself." she cried

Sparky slowly pulled away and looked at her compassionately. He gently wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Clare, don't worry. I can do this, plus I need to. I need to prove to your dad that I am worthy of you. I will be back before you know it." he said softly

"But you just said you would do anything to keep me safe. That means staying here and protecting me." she cried

"Yes, but that also means I must go and fight for you, to keep you safe. Clare, you have to let me do this."Sparky said

Clare continued to cry. She slowly let go of him and walked off the ramp. She put her hands together and put them up to her face. Sparky stood there, pulling his bow off his body and gripping it.

"Don't worry Clare, I'll be back soon." he promised

Suddenly, the sound of hydraulics filled the air. The troop-bay door slowly began to rise up. It shut completely and a hissing sound filled the bay as the door sealed. Sparky felt the entire bay shake as the helicopter lifted off the ground. The eerie red light barely lit the room. Sparky slowly walked over to a seat and sat down next to the team leader. It was completely silent in the troop bay for most of the ride. The sound of helicopter rotors was deafening. After a while the leader finally spoke to him.

"She your girlfriend?" he asked

"I guess. Her dad doesn't want us to date though." Sparky replied

"Whose her dad?" he asked

"Sonic the Hedgehog."

The leader looked at him with a surprised face. Sparky chuckled at his surprise. That was clearly not what the leader expected. Just then, crackling from the radio came over the troop-bay. A barely understandable voice came over it.

"ETA to target, one mike. Get ready for a hot exit, once we're on the ground, we won't be staying long." announced the pilot

All the troops stood up almost simultaneously. The un-slung their assault rifles. The sound of clicking could be heard as they turned the safeties off. Sparky stood up as well and readied his bow. He pulled out an arrow and loaded it. The team leader walked over to the door and stood in front of the team.

"Alright guys, we are here to find the resistance team in the city, and pull out. I want a clean op, everything by the book. And our little guest here, will be tagging along. So try and use him as a meat shield." The leader announced, joking about the last part.

Everybody laughed just as the door began to open. Sparky expected light to shine, but he was wrong. The sky was black with smoke. Burning and destroyed buildings were everywhere. The streets were full of dead people and destroyed cars. Craters and piles of rubble filled the streets as well. Everybody went quiet when they saw what had happened to the once massive mega-city. Sparky was shocked by what had happened to his old home. As he was looking at the city, the leader tapped his shoulder. Sparky looked over and saw the leader holding a pistol in his hand. He motioned for Sparky to grab it. Sparky took it and holstered it on his belt. Just then, the drop-ship began to slowly descend, into the smoke filled streets. The smoke and dust from the ground was thrown up by the rotors of the helicopter. Sparky pulled his scarf over his mouth and readied himself to get off. As soon as the drop-ship was close to the ground, the leader yelled.

"Go, go, go!" he screamed

The entire team worked like clockwork getting off the helicopter. They quickly got off and formed a semi-circle. Sparky was the last to get off. He aimed his bow in every direction, but he saw nothing. As soon as they were off, the osprey began to rise. It quickly disappeared into the smoke filled sky. It was soon completely quiet. Not a sound was made in the city. Sparky could only hear his own breathing. The street they were on was massive. The street was full of dead robots, people, destroyed cars, and rubble. A single streetlight flickered over them. It was a ghostly sight. The team leader pulled out a map and looked at it.

"The RV is two clicks south. Lets get moving gentlemen." he ordered

The whole squad got up and began slowly moving towards the rendezvous point. They aimed their weapons in every direction. The red lasers on their rifles were clearly seen by the smoke. The cautiously moved along an alleyway. Sparky aimed his bow as well, checking the back of the group. As they walked along, one of the men radioed to the others.

"I got something on the motion sensor. Hold up."

The entire team stopped. Sparky hid next to a dumpster and checked the alleyway. The sound of pinging from the motion sensor left an eerie echo through the metal walls. The ping became more and more frequent. The team circled up next to each other, aiming their rifles in every direction.

"Something big is getting closer." reported the operator

The leader came up next to him and looked down at the blue screen of the sensor. On the screen were two lines, representing the walls of the alleyway. The team was a green dot. On both sides of the alleyway, massive red dots were slowly approaching them. The leader's face turned grim. The robots were coming, and there were a lot of them. He reached for his radio.

"We've got 20 plus tangos approaching from both directions, stack up." he ordered

The team sprung into action. Half of the team took cover, aiming down one side of the alley. The other aimed down the other side. They were all silent. The leader came over to Sparky and aimed his rifle over the top of the dumpster.

"I sure hope that resistance group is worth this. You better be as good as the king said you are." he said silently

Sparky nodded and pulled back his bow. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed down the alley. They were loud and numerous. They sounded robotic, metal hitting metal. The weight of each step was frightening. Ever so slowly, red lights slowly came into view through the smoke. Massive black forms blocked the exits to the alley. Soon, the first few robots could be seen clearly. They were aiming their miniguns at the team. The miniguns were slowly spinning faster and faster.

"Burn those motherfuckers!" Yelled the leader

Simultaneously, the entire team opened fire on the robots. Bright flashes of light from the rifles lit of the alley. The sound of gunfire echoed and grew deafening. The pinging sounds of spent shell casings filled the air. The team was desperately shooting at the advancing robots. Sadly, the rounds just pinged off the robots' heavy armor. They got closer and closer. Sparky aimed his bow at the eye of the lead robot. He let go and the arrow flew through the air. It struck the robot in its eye and it fell over. The leader saw this and grinned.

"We found a way to take these guys down. Aim for the red light!" yelled the leader

There was a slight pause as the team readjusted their aim. Within seconds, the team was shooting again. This time, their shots hit the red lights on the robots' heads. The first robot fell.

"Tango down!" yelled one soldier

With that, the robots fell down fast. They continued to be shot down by the precision aim of the spec ops team. For quite a few minutes, the spec ops team held their own against the robots. But as time dragged on, the robots' numbers continued to press against them. While the robots seemed to have unlimited numbers. The spec ops team did not have unlimited ammo. Soon, they had to use their shots sparingly. Even Sparky was beginning to run low on arrows. This gave way for the robots to spin up their miniguns.

"They're spinning up!" yelled one operator

As soon as he said this, the loud buzz of the miniguns shot through the air. Within seconds, the first soldier fell. His body was ripped apart by the miniguns.

"Wisp is down!" screamed on operator

One soldier ran over to help his comrade. Sadly, he was torn to pieces trying to drag the body out of the fight. The leader saw this, his men were not going to last long.

"Get to cover. Hide behind something!" he screamed

The remaining operators ran over, behind the dumpster and a pile of rubble. They were pinned between the two objects. Sparky hid behind the dumpster, he knew this was the end.

"We're pinned, I can't get a shot!" reported an operator

They were pinned, there was nothing they could do. The sounds of bullets, slowly ripping away their cover, was unsettling. The robots were closing in and continued their spay of bullets.

"Frag out!" Yelled on soldier

a small explosion followed. It was too soon though. A small fireball erupted in the air. The robots had shot the frag grenade before it had even gotten close. This was the end for Sparky and the team of spec ops troops. Suddenly, and an arrow flew down from the sky. It latched onto the head of a lead robot. Within seconds, the robot exploded. The explosion knocked over a few other robots as well. Another arrow flew down and hit the other lead robot. Blue sparks and electricity shot through the robots. It fell over, sizzling. The robots continued, but so did the arrows. The arrows fell form the sky and robots continued to go down. Soon, Sparky and the team could peer around the dumpster and rubble to see what was becoming of the robots. Piles of dead robots were creating a barrier between the survivors and the robots. Everybody was confused as to what just saved them.

"Were those your arrows?" asked the leader

Sparky shrugged, he didn't know where these mysterious arrows came from either. Suddenly, a figure in a purple hood and cape landed on the ground next to them. Its hood cast a shadow over its face and the purple cape draped over its body, hiding any sign of what it was. Everybody was speechless. The figure turned its shadowy head around and looked at the team. It silently stood up and walked over to the team. The figure was a strange one. It pulled its cloak back, revealing a black dress with a white cross going through it. It was a girl! And a young one at that, she was just a little bit shorter than Sparky. A leather utility belt with large pouches on the sides was around its waist. The girl holstered what seemed to be a blue crossbow. Her boots were maroon with white strips going down them. Her gloves were white with black X's on them. She stood in front of the team with an indifferent look. The shadow cast over her eyes and only her muzzle could be seen.

"You guys look a little beat up. Having a tough time handling the tin cans?" she asked

The entire team was speechless. The mysterious girl giggled and pulled down her hood. She was just as young as Sparky! She was a light red hedgehog with a single red bang going down one eye. One quill was a pony-tail. She had light blue eyes as well. Sparky had never seen this girl before. Sparky was amazed that a girl could be such a great archer at her age.

"Who... who are you?" asked Sparky is disbelief

"I'm the "Huntreat", but my friends call me Lilly." she said, doing a small curtsey.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. HAHA, and you guys thought I was going to switch all this work over to another story? Funny! No, I am sticking with this story because it is going good actually and after having a soul searching time, I thought I should continue this story. Anyway, I am going to leave it there, no more of this chapter for you! So, Sparky and his team have just met a new character. She is a fan character that belongs to GummyGal. (Who is an author you should check out. Just sayin') So I thought this character, Lilly, would be a great part of the story. She will add a bit of fun to Sparky and Clare's story, since she is a girl. *wink wink* So, that is all I have to say, the next chapter will continue with Sparky, and then switch back to Sonic. Do you know how hard it is to write to developing story-lines that are getting more and more complex every time? It's impossible. Well, as always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, Hasta la vista **


	10. Lilly

"**With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous escape."**

**-Proverbs 11:9**

"I'm the "Huntreat", but my friends call me Lilly." she said, doing a small curtsey.

Sparky was in awe at the girl who was standing in front of him. He had never thought a girl could be an archer, but here was one, and a darn good one too. Sparky was speechless. They all stood there awkwardly for a few minutes. The two hedgehogs looked at each other with confused stares. Sparky was confused as to why a pretty girl like her was in the city. Lilly was confused about why a stupid boy was out with a special forces team. They both confused each other. Finally, the team leader broke the silence. He butted in front of Sparky and looked down at the young archer with angered eyes.

"Thanks for saving us, but we don't need your help. We are looking for the resistance group. Please get back inside." the officer ordered

Lilly looked up at the leader with an irritated expression. She put her hands on her hips and huffed.

"For your information, captain, I am the resistance. So show a bit more respect." she said in a threatening tone

The entire team was in shock at what she said. Whispers from the other troops could be heard in the background. The team leader didn't know how to respond. Sparky was in amazement as well. This whole mission had been a strange one for him. He thought that this Lilly girl would have been proud that she was in the resistance, but she wasn't. She seemed to get depressed when she said she was in the resistance. The team leader shook himself out of his wonder and came back to his senses.

"What do you mean you are the resistance?" he asked in a suspicious tone

Lilly hesitated.

"I mean I'm the only one left." she replied in a grave tone

Gasps of shock echoed out in the metal alleyway. The team looked at each other in dismay. They had been sent in to rescue hundreds of resistance fighters, not a single girl with a crossbow.

"Well this is a pile of shit." scoffed a trooper

The trooper next to him elbowed him in the stomach and glared at him. Lilly didn't take offense to it. She just nodded in acknowledgment.

"I know." she said sadly

Sparky couldn't contain himself, he wanted to know what had happened.

"We heard there were hundreds of you, what happened?" he asked desperately

Lilly looked at him with a sad face.

"I've been on the run for a while. We used to have hundreds of fighters in our safe house under the capital building. There were hundreds of survivors as well. We were well fed and the resistance was putting up a good fight with hit and run attacks. But one of our scouts was careless. After a recon mission, a scout forgot to turn off his radio. The robots picked up on the signal and followed it. He accidentally led all the robots in the city to our location. Shortly after he got back, the robots burst in and slaughtered everybody. They had surrounded the place and had opened up their guns."

Lilly stopped, putting her hand over her mouth. She let a tear fall and sniffled. A loud inhale came and she let her hand down.

"I hid in a box for two hours. When I got out I... I... saw them all dead." she cried

Sparky's face turned pitiful. He felt bad for this girl, losing everybody. He didn't know that feeling. Rob, Mari-an, and Clare were his only friends.

"That must suck." Sparky said quietly

Lilly looked over at him with a stern look. She seemed angry at him, as if he had done something wrong. Looking over at the squad leader, she burst out in a scream.

"You guys couldn't have shown up earlier! This invasion happened two days ago and your just now sending help?! Thanks to your lovely king Tails, I am the only one left in Robotropolis!" She screamed

Sparky was taken aback by her loud accusation. He hadn't realized that they had taken a long time to get to this city. The squad leader's expression changed to one of rage. His face turned red with rage and his body tensed up. His teeth showed as he growled at the bold young girl. It took every fiber of will in his body to not shoot the girl right there. Rebels would not be tolerated. Sparky saw the two of them staring fiercely at each other. Daggers were being thrown by their stares. Sparky and the other team members felt awkward and stood silently. After a long silence, one of the team members spoke up.

"Sir, we need to get to RV point Alpha soon. We're going to miss the time window." he reported

"Fine, bag up Wisp and Sev. Rest of you, clear that sky scraper." said the leader, never taking his eyes off Lilly

The other troopers bagged up the two dead soldiers. Sparky found a door to the sky scraper next to them and unlocked it. Lilly was impressed at how quickly he had picked the lock with a knife. That utility belt seemed useful. She needed to ask him what on earth he was doing with the spec ops troops. His two blue bangs and his scarf were very stylish, not like the tactical gear the troops wore. She stood next to him as the soldiers dragged the bodies inside. She looked over at him and held out her hand.

"Sorry, I didn't catch your name." She said

Sparky took her hand and shook it.

"Sparky." he said cheerfully

After a long, cautious, and terrifying trip up the sky scraper, the team made it to the roof. They had been lucky. They had been ambushed a couple times by smaller robots. Luckily, the smaller robots' armor was not very strong and were taken down easily. Sparky had to use the pistol the leader had given him. He didn't like using guns, to violent. He liked using his bow more. Apart from the robot ambushes, the team made it to the top unscathed. When they reached the roof, Sparky immediately walked over to the side of the building. The building was taller than the layer of dark clouds that covered the city. He was amazed by the beauty of the sky. The clear, light blue space was a nice change from the smog and darkness of the city. As he stood, overlooking the cloud-covered city, Lilly walked up to him. She stood next to him and gazed in wonder at the sky. Sparky chuckled under his breath at her amazement, as if she had never seen clear skies before. Suddenly, Sparky remembered something. He was in a relationship with Clare. This was new to him. Rob had taught him to be faithful to a girl he liked, but he had never thought that might be hard to do. He couldn't flirt with this girl. He felt incredibly guilty now. Thankfully, the sounds of rotor blades began to echo through the sky. The osprey was coming to pick them up.

"Let's go." He said cheerfully

Once the osprey landed, they all shuffled in. They carefully rested down the two dead soldiers in the middle of the troop bay. The others sat on the benches along the walls. As the osprey lifted off, the pilots left the troop bay door open. Sparky and Lilly sat next to each other and looked out at the ground as they flew along. As they flew, both of the hedgehogs were in awe at the world they saw. They saw all the peaceful fields and forests. They saw the small, abandoned villages that dotted the landscape. But most of all, they saw the front lines of the war. An hour into the flight, the sounds of gunfire could be heard. Sparky and Lilly looked out curiously to see where the gunfire was coming from. Suddenly, a massive explosion rocked the helicopter. Sparks flew from wiring and a loud beeping sound could be heard from the cockpit. The radio crackled to life and the pilot spoke through it.

"The robots have opened fire on us, hold on!"he yelled

Sparky and Lilly strapped themselves in and held on tightly. She looked over at him with a terrified face. He stared back at her with a grim expression. Another explosion could be heard and felt, but not as close. More and more explosions shook the helicopter and black puffs of smoke could be seem in the sky behind them. As they were looking at the black puffs, Sparky notice the landscape below them had changed. It was now smoking and covered in rubble. Craters from bombs peppered the ground. All the trees were chopped up and fallen over. Dead robots and animals could be seen everywhere. Destroyed tanks, trucks and other vehicles were everywhere. Tracer rounds flew back and forth and rockets shot out as well. Yells and screams came from the kingdom's side. No sounds except moving robotic limbs came from the robot's side. The robots seemed to be advancing in a full frontal assault. They didn't care if their entire unit was destroyed, they kept walking forward. Their sheer numbers were overwhelming the troops of the kingdom. The kingdom's troops were in trenches and fox-holes. Their numbers seemed to be dropping and their flanks were being cut down. Sparky wasn't a tactician, but he knew a losing battle when he saw one.

"We aren't going to last long, are we?" Lilly asked sadly

Sparky slowly looked over at her with a sad face. He didn't want to except it, but she was right. Even with Sonic fighting, there was only one of him, and billions of them.

"No, we're not going to last." he said grimly

Suddenly, another explosion shook the helicopter. This time however, it was close, too close. The AA guns had made a direct hit with one of the rotors of the osprey. Sparks flew everywhere and loud beeping deafened them. The osprey quickly began to lose control. It was spiraling as it fell to the earth. The spec ops team had not buckled in and were flying around the troop bay like dolls. One of the troops flew out the open troop bay door. He screamed as he flew out, never to be seem again. Lilly screamed in fear and closed her eyes. Sparky was in shock at what he was seeing, they were going to crash. The radio once again crackled to life.

"This is Talon 2-3. We are going down in sector 35497-"

The osprey hit the ground before the pilot finished giving off the distress signal. The osprey hit the ground on its nose and spiraled on the ground. Its wings broke off and the rotors cut the fuselage in half. The front half of the osprey blew up seconds after it was separated. The back half continued to spiral. The team leader had flown out as well. Sparky had no idea what was happening. He couldn't hear himself scream over the sound of crashing metal, explosions, gunfire, and Lilly screaming. Eventually, the back half of the osprey hit the side of a tree and stopped violently. Sparky fell unconscious and blacked out.

To Sparky, it seemed like he had been past out for only a second. But as he slowly began to regain awareness, he realized he had been out for a long time. As he woke up, the smells, sights, and sounds of war overwhelmed him. The sounds of soldiers screaming, gunfire, explosions, and the whizzing of bullets flying close deafened him. The smell of rotting flesh, internal body smells, gunpowder, and smoke caked his lungs. As his vision cleared, Sparky was horrified. What he saw were three royal army soldiers laying behind cover, shooting at the robots. They yelled at each other and tossed extra magazines at them as well. Sonic saw Lilly perched up at the top of the destroyed osprey, sniping robots with her bow. He then noticed, she was wearing her purple hood and cape again. He couldn't make out any of her features. She really was a "Huntreat". She clearly didn't want anybody to recognize her. He would need to ask he why she did that if they survived. Sparky then noticed he was detached from his seat and was sitting against the wall of the osprey. His bow and quiver were laying on the ground next to him. He picked them up. His bow had a few scratches, but wasn't broke. His quiver however, was not as lucky. Almost all his arrows were gone. He only had three arrows, a knife, and a pistol with 15 rounds in it. Not good.

"Lilly, what's going on?!" he yelled

Lilly fired another bold and looked down at him. Her eyes were blacked out by the shadow of the hood and only her muzzle was visible.

"Too many tin cans closing in! They aren't letting up! Also, the main force has pulled back, we are surrounded and cut off! Our radio man was shot and the lieutenant is dead as well! Hope you're good at running!" Lilly reported

Sparky knew they were done. He had been lucky before, but now there seemed to be no hope here. He stood up and ran to cover. He looked around the metal wall and examined the environment. The once beautiful forest now was completely leveled and destroyed. All the trees were now splinted stumps, the ground was full of debris and dead bodies. A massive line of torn up soil and trees came from the osprey. The tumbling helicopter had created a huge line across the battlefield. Sadly, the battlefield was now full of massive black robots. The robots' ominous red eyes stared at them emotionless. They were slowly walking forward, shooting at them. Sparky had to make his last three arrows count. He needed another weapon though.

"Missile! Everybody down!" yelled one soldier

Sparky turned around just in time to see a massive fireball consume the group of soldiers protecting them. He fell back from the shock wave. His ears ringed after he fell back. He saw Lilly jump down from her post and run over to him. She knelt down next to him and examined him.

"You're good, get up! Sparky get up, we got to leave!" she screamed

Sparky took her hand and held it tightly. Tears could be seen falling from the shadow over Lilly's eyes.

"We're finished Lilly. We got to surrender." Sparky said, slowly sitting up

"No, I'm not ready yet. We held out for hours before you woke up! We can hold out longer!"

Sparky rolled over and saw the advancing robots. They were still aiming at them, but they weren't shooting. They wanted prisoners. Sparky growled and slowly stood up. He picked up his bow and pulled out an arrow. He loaded it and aimed at the robot closest to him. Lilly loaded another bolt into her crossbow and aim it at a robot behind them. They had their backs against each other.

"Sparky, you know your human history?" she asked

"Pretty well, why?" he answered

"This is our Battle of the Bulge." she said

"Nuts." Sparky said

Lilly chuckled and shot her crossbow. Sparky let of of his arrow. Their battle had now begun.

Sonic sprinted back into the palace. He was returning back from his battle with the robots. Thankfully, he was successful. The robots were destroyed, and Rob as safe. Sonic loved it, he loved fighting the robots. It reminded him of the days long ago when he fought Dr. Eggman. Now he was fighting an enemy that he could easily handle. Sonic never thought that he would be fighting robots with Metal Sonic's legs. It was an ironic twist that disturbed him somewhat. However, the new legs were the greatest thing that happened to him since Amy married him and they had Clare.

Sonic sprinted into the throne room of the palace and stood in front of the throne. The room was massive, a testament to King Elias' evil spending. Pillars made of black marble lined the room. The wooden floor sparkled in the sun. A long blue carpet led up to throne. Hallway entrances were on the walls. At the end of the massive room was the throne. It was a tall wooden chair with blue padding. It was not incredibly palatial because Tails was not a king who expected privilege. He sat on the chair, looking down at a tablet, issuing orders. He was wearing his small crown and his red cape. That was all he wore, no special decorations or clothing. Next to him was Cream in the queen's chair. Her chair was exactly the same as Tails' except a bit shorter. However, she wore a long orange dress with a light blue bow on her waist. She tried to remind her old friends of their glory days as much as she could.

When Sonic ran into the room, he stopped. Tails and Cream looked at him with relieved faces. Sonic bowed slightly and grinned.

"Tails, the robots have been sent out of Mossflower." Sonic reported

Tails got up and walked over to Sonic. He smiled as he walked and put his hand on Sonic's shoulder. Sonic looked at Tails. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. Bags were under his fatigued eyes. His eyes were heavy and were close to being closed. He needed a coffee and fast.

"Nice work. Now, if you are up to it, I have another mission for yo-" Tails stopped mid-sentence

He sniffed a few times and a puzzled expression came over him. He looked around the room, sniffing. Sonic wondered why he was acting so weird.

"What is it Tails?" he asked

Tails continued to look around.

"I smell something, burning." he replied

Tails looked down and found the source of the burning smell. It was Sonic's metal feet. They were glowing red and were burning the carpet and wood under him. The metal feet were glowing hotter than they had when Sonic had gone to Rob's house. Tails panicked and jumped back. He looked up at Sonic with a mad expression.

"Sonic, did you sprint the entire way back?!" he exclaimed

Sonic slowly nodded his head in shame. Cream giggled in the background at his embarrassment. Tails folded his arms and stared at Sonic with an irritated look.

"You know better than to run that long that fast." he said

"I know, sorry." Sonic apologized

"If you aren't careful with those legs, they could hurt you or someone else. I may have to take them away from you if you're not careful."

Sonic suddenly boiled with rage when Tails said that. He stared at Tails with a horrifyingly angry stare. He growled and showed his canines. He slowly walked over to Tails, grabbed his chest fur and picked him up off the ground. Tails' eyes were now fully awake and terrified. He trembled in Sonic's grip.

"I will not let you ever take these things away from me. I have a job as a hero, and it isn't finished yet." Sonic growled

Tails understood and nodded quickly.

"Okay, okay man, whatever you say. Sorry. Please put me down." Tails begged

Sonic hesitated for a moment. He continued to stare down Tails with his demon-like stare. Eventually, he let him go. Sonic put down Tails and stepped back. Tails composed himself and stared at Sonic for a while. Suddenly, a scream came from one of the hallways. Sonic and Tails quickly spun around to see who had screamed. They saw two girl hedgehogs running at Sonic. One was pink and the other was purple. They were Amy and Clare. Amy was running ahead of Clare. When she got close, she jumped towards Sonic. Sonic put his arms out, trying to block the tackle.

"No, Amy wait!" Sonic begged

It was too late, Amy had already jumped on him and was hugging him with her death grip. Sonic gasped for air and looked down at Amy.

"(gasp) Amy... (gasp)I'm fine." Sonic said

"Oh Sonic, don't do that again. We were so worried." Amy said, letting go

Sonic breathed heavily after her death hug. She could still death hug after all these years. She amazed him. Sadly, their reunion was broken up before Clare had a chance to greet Sonic. A soldier ran into the throne room. She was a squirrel who was in the black uniform of the military. Dirt and blood was splattered over her uniform. Her helmet was gone and only her headset was over her ears. She was panting and tired. She stood by everybody, staring at them and panting. Everybody turned and faced the soldier with a startled expression. She eyed everyone and then stared at Tails. He took special interest in this soldier.

"What is it corporal?" asked Tails in a professional tone

"Sir, the western front has broken apart. Our forces are in retreat. They overwhelmed us sir, I was there. They are deploying hundreds more robots to that area. At their current rate, they'll reach the capital's walls tomorrow." The soldier reported in a dreadful tone

Gasps of shock echoed through the throne room. Tails was completely taken by surprise at the news. This meant the end for the kingdom. He didn't have the troops to stop this advancing force and keep up the rest of the borders. Sonic could only help so much, and Amy couldn't fight either. This was a grim situation. Before Tails could issue an order, the soldier spoke up again.

"And the osprey carrying the spec ops troops back from Robotropolis was shot down at the old front line. We got a distress signal an hour ago. They are still holding out, but are surrounded inside the fuselage and most likely on their last mags."

"Damn it!" Tails yelled

"Oh no, Sparky was on that mission!" Clare screamed

Clare fell to the ground and began to cry. The one boyfriend she had ever had was now behind enemy lines and going to die. She had told him not to go, he was stupid and selfish to go. If he got back, she would never forgive him. She curled up and cried out loud. Sonic saw his daughter crying and knelt down and stroked her slim body. He may not have liked Sparky, but he meant everything to Clare. He wanted more than anything to see Clare happy, and he would do anything to accomplish that.

"Shh Clare, I will go out and rescue him. I will bring him back alive, I promise. And when I make a promise, I keep it." Sonic said softly

Clare continued to cry, almost as if she had not heard him. Sonic patted Clare lightly and stood up. He looked over at Tails and Amy, who were looking back at him. They both nodded slowly in approval. Sonic looked over at the soldier.

"Where is the western front?" he asked

"Five miles directly west from here." she replied

Sonic nodded and sprinted off as fast as he could. Withing a millisecond, the only thing left of him were the burn marks on the carpet. Tails and Amy stared out at the direction he ran at. She stood closer to him.

"You think he will succeed?" she asked with a concerned voice

"He has to." Tails responded, spinning around and heading for the command-room.

**Hello Everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. Wow! I am so so so so sorry for how long it took to write this chapter. I had a friend over for the weekend so I couldn't write. School has been a bit tough so I can't write as much. I just am having a tough time finding time to write, forgive me. Anyway, I couldn't hold it it, I'm just too happy. So as some of you remember, in the story "I remember" I said that a girl cheated on me while I was gone. Well, guess who came back last week and asked to go out? Anyway, I am happy. Sorry, I got off track. So, I hope you will all keep reading because this story is going to get very good. As always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time. Papapa!**


	11. Peace?

"**But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed."**

**-Isaiah 53:5**

Sparky and Lilly stood back to back. They were surrounded by hundreds of terrifying robots. Sparky had run out of arrows. Lilly had run out of bolts. They were out of ammo, surrounded, and most likely already dead. But something strange had happened. They robots were not shooting them, or even hurting them. The robots had stopped marching just a few feet away from the two hedgehogs. The massive sea of black robots surrounded them from every direction and there was no way out. Neither of them had weapons to fight the robots. The best they could do is get in a fighting stance, but even that seemed useless. Sparky never thought that he would end up being captured and killed by robots. He had always believed he would die from a sword blade or old age. Lilly never believed that she would die for no reason. She believed that she would die rescuing someone, but not like this. She turned her head over and looked at Sparky. He was covered in bruises and cuts. Sweat dripped down his face like a waterfall. He was panting and had a distressed look in his eyes. Lilly had not fared much better. Her cloak and dress were torn. She too had cuts and bruises all over her. Her eyes burned from the light of all the explosions.

"What do ya think will happen now?" she asked in a tired voice

There was a moment of silence before Sparky answered.

"We're probably going to be held for ransom." he replied in depressed tone

Lilly nodded slowly and looked back up at the nearest robot. Its emotionless red eye stared down at her. The sound of deep buzzing came from the robots. It seemed like these robots were under the control of something, the didn't think for themselves. Sparky looked up at one of the robots. He then grinned from an idea he had. Sparky reached into his utility belt. He pulled out what appeared to be a taser. He pressed the shock button and a small blue bolt of lightening shot out from its tip. It made a small crackling noise. Lilly looked over at him and saw him holding the taser up and grinning. She was confused but also worried about what her friend was thinking.

"What are you doing with that?" she asked

"Pissing off some robots." He relied

Sparky ran up to the nearest robot. He jumped up and grabbed onto the robot's antennae. The robot spun around, trying to get the hedgehog off of it. Sparky took the taser placed it on the robot's eye. The entire robot froze as electricity shot through it. Sparky yelled with joy as the robot slowly began to fall to the ground. The robot's eye slowly faded and turned black.

"That's why they call me Sparky!" he yelled

Lilly laughed at his joke. But their joy was short lived. Suddenly, one of the robots used their free hand and grabbed Sparky around the waist. The metal hand's grip tightened. Sparky struggled to wiggle his way out but it was too tight. The robot raised him into the air and held him there.

"Sparky!" Lilly screamed

"Let go of me you walking scrap heap!" Sparky demanded

Lilly was just about to run over to save him when another robot grabbed her. It too tightened its grip on her and raised her into the air. Lilly struggled as well but couldn't escape the grip. She looked over at Sparky and sighed. He looked at her with a "Who knew?" expression. Now they couldn't move and were still in danger of dying.

Sonic sprinted through the woods of the Acorn Kingdom. He sprinted past everything as fast as he could. He never paid any attention to anything. His mission was more important than anything else. He needed to save Sparky and his group from the robots. He couldn't believe he was doing this, he hated that hedgehog, but Clare liked him, and the resistance group was there was well.

Sonic didn't realize it until it had already happened. He had sprinted right past the front lines of the war. He had sprinted past hundreds of royal army soldiers and robots. He had sprinted past the tanks and aircraft and everything else. He hadn't noticed them at all and they probably hadn't felt anything except a violent gust of wind. Sonic sprinted through the destroyed and burned countryside without even noticing it. But he continued on running. He ran. Sonic ran and ran and ran. He was now running past hundreds of advancing robots. He was so quick however, that they were not able to recognize him. Sonic continued sprinting until he saw something. He saw a sea of black robots. They seemed to be surrounding something, something small. The hundreds and hundreds of robots didn't appear to be moving as well. Sonic stopped just outside the sea of robots. He stood there and wondered what might there be in the middle of the group. Suddenly, he heard a scream come from inside the crowd.

"Sparky!" Yelled a girl's voice

Sonic instantly realized what was in the middle of all the robots. It was Sparky and the resistance team. Sonic jumped into the air and curled up into a ball of spikes. He homed in on a random robot and shot towards it. He ripped through the metal and landed on the other side of the robot. A large hole went directly through the robot's chest. It fell over, crushing another robot next to it. All the robots around him turned and looked down at Sonic. They stared for a second at him. Then, one of them spoke up in a deep, threatening robotic voice.

"Target identified. Open fire." It said

All the robots around him aimed their miniguns at Sonic. The multiple barrels began to spin faster and faster. Sonic grinned and sprinted forward. He tore through one robot and jumped into the air. The robots began to shoot at him, but he was too quick for them. Sonic ran around, kicking robots and making some explode. Some robots shot at him with their missile launchers, blowing away any robot near him. Others continued to shoot at him with their miniguns, missing and tearing apart robots next to him. Sonic jumped into the air and curled up into a ball. He shot at a dozen robots. They exploded seconds after he had started running away from his strike.

Sparky and Clare looked up suddenly when they heard an explosion near them. They both looked in the direction of the fireballs. What they saw both relieved, and horrified them. They saw a line of explosions and tracer-rounds flying. They saw dozens of robots flying into the sky and exploding. Occasionally, a blue flash would dart through the sky and tear into a robot. Sparky grinned with unheard of amounts of joy. Sonic was coming to save them. Lilly looked over at him with a worried face.

"What is that?" she asked, her voice trembling with fear.

"It's the "Ghost"." Sparky replied with a joyful tone

Sonic decided it was time to stop playing and go help whoever was trapped. Sonic sprinted through the sea of robots, kicking them to the sides and spin-balling through others. Sparky and Lilly tracked the line of destruction coming towards them. Eventually, a massive explosion from one robot near the center of the explosion filled the air with smoke. Sparky pulled his scarf over his muzzle and Lilly took her hood and tried her best to put it over her muzzle. They looked around, frantically looking for the "Ghost", as Sparky had called it. As the smoke began to clear, Sparky was able to spot something standing strait up in the middle of the circle. Its features were barely visible. Through the smoke, Sparky saw a hedgehog. It had legs that glowed orange. A tattered cloak flew in the wind behind it. As the smoke cleared, the figure became visible. It was a blue male hedgehog. His brown cloak flew behind him, giving him a ghostly appearance. His green eyes filled with rage sent chills down Lilly's spine. He had an angered expression. His legs were not normal however. His knees and bottom legs were robotic. They glowed orange and were burning the ground under him. Lilly and Sparky were both in awe at the sight. But Lilly let out a tear when she saw who it was.

"Sonic the Hedgehog?!" she cried

Sonic looked up at Lilly and Sparky. He let an evil grin appear and looked around. Sonic jumped into the air and used a homing attack on the robot that held Lilly. He tore through the robot's chest. The robot's grip loosened and Lilly jumped out of the robot's hand. Sonic repeated this with Sparky. Sparky and Lilly ran over to each other and stood, looking at the robots that were around them. Suddenly, another robot that was staring at them fell over. Sonic walked up and stood on the robot's back. His metal feet made a clinking sound on the metal. He looked at them with a serious face.

"You all that's left?" he asked

"Y-yes sir." Lilly replied nervously

Sonic nodded and spun around. He jumped into the air and shot at the robots. Sparky and Lilly stood and watched in awe as Sonic destroyed the like they were made out of paper. He continued violently ripping apart the robot's ranks. This continued until there were only a couple dozen robots scattered through the field. The robots relentlessly shot at him, never giving up. Sonic was sprinting over to destroy another robot when suddenly, a voice screamed out.

"Enough!" yelled the male voice

The robots stopped shooting and Sonic stopped running. The world seemed to fall completely silent. Nobody said a word or even breathed. They all waited to see who had called off the robots. Suddenly, a rather small black sphere approached Sonic. It had twin rotor blades on its sides that propelled it and kept it flying. The small ball-like helicopter hovered over the robot in front of Sonic for quite some time. Sparky and Lilly slowly approached Sonic and stood behind him. They all looked up at the black ball with confusion.

"What are you?" Sonic growled

A long chuckle came from the pod. It sounded like an old human's voice. After a bit more laughing, the laugh turned into a cough. Eventually it stopped and the voice cleared his throat.

"You haven't realized it yet have you, Sonic?" said the voice

Sonic was now burning with rage. This smug person and caused the deaths of thousands and had destroyed multiple cities.

"Show yourself!" Sonic screamed

"As you wish." said the voice in a courteous tone

The top half of the ball began to slide backwards. It slid back, slowly revealing who was behind it. What Sonic saw next shook him to the core. The person sitting in the cockpit of the ball was a rather fat human. He was older, much older. His long mustache was gray and sagging. His skin was wrinkled and pale. His nose was long and red. His eyes were the strangest part however. His right eye was blue seemed tired. His left however, was a different story. The left half of head was robotic. The robotic half seemed to be added on. He wasn't a cyborg by any means. But his left eye was a red light, like the robots they had been fighting. But something else scared Sonic, the figure's left arm was robotic. It was fat like his right, but its fingers looked more like blades than fingers. It took awhile for Sonic to take in this strange man, but suddenly, he realized who he was. It was Dr. Eggman! He was alive and seemed quite well.

"Eggman?!" Sonic screamed at the top of his lungs

Eggman chuckled and looked down at the hedgehog.

"Yes my old friend, it is I. And I'm here to get my revenge on you and the rest of the kingdom!" Yelled Eggman

Sonic couldn't handle it. He fell to his knees and put his hands on his forehead. He had never been so confused. The revelation was startling to say the least.

"B-but... h-how d-did... you... sur-survive?" asked Sonic, holding back tears

"That is quite a story indeed isn't it? I will tell you. After you blew up my robot, I was propelled through the air. I landed miles away from the crash-site. I laid on the ground, bleeding from my arm missing, and half my head missing. I was dead. But someone found me. But something happened, something that to this day, I do not fully understand. Something kept me alive, it felt like what Shadow had described as Chaos Control. But I woke up, still bleeding, but it didn't effect on me. With this power, I wandered through the woods aimlessly for weeks, living off of this strange energy. Eventually, I made it to the edge of the woods, but when I did, things had changed. I saw a village being attacked by the Freedom Fighters. They were pillaging the village with ruthless efficiency. I watched it in awe, but then I saw a black and blue flash strike the Freedom Fighters. I saw this flash beat up and almost kill the Freedom Fighters, except for Amy. After all this happened, I traveled down to the village. I learned about what was happening in the kingdom. I learned about the Freedom Fighters turning evil and raiding my bases for technology and villages for taxes. I learned about "Ghost" that was fighting them. This all seemed to make no sense, but I made sense of it. I found one of my older bases that I had abandoned long ago. There I forged my new body parts and my new army. I have spent the last 20 years creating an army large enough to destroy the Acorn Kingdom. And I am finally getting my revenge on you for doing this to me!"

Sonic couldn't comprehend what Eggman had just said. It was all so unbelievable to him. It didn't make any sense at all and confused him. But something began to burn in Sonic. He felt himself slowly stand up without his own will. His eyes soon had flames in them as he stared at Eggman. Pure hatred began to seethe out of his body. Sonic growled and showed his canines.

"You did this!" Sonic screamed, pointing a finger at Eggman. "You did all of this! You are the reason the Freedom Fighters turned evil! You are the reason I killed my friends! You are the reason I lost my legs! You are the reason so many people suffered! You are the reason I hate myself! You did all of this!" Sonic screamed

Sparky and Lilly stepped back, fearing what might come next. Sonic's quills began to lift up. His eye began to turn white. His blue fur turned darker and darker. Dark purple energy resonated from his body. Sonic rose off the ground and floated in the air. His face was one of deep hatred and sadness. Tears fell from his glowing white eyes.

"Now now Sonic, this is no time for you to get upset." Eggman said, trying to hold back how nervous he was

Dark Sonic had now fully appeared. He screamed and flew towards Eggman. Eggman knew a threat when he saw one. He panicked and quickly turned his aircraft around. He flew away from the hedgehog as fast as he could. Dark Sonic chased him all the way, out of the battlefield, and into the wilderness. He chased Eggman into the woods at the farthest known parts of Mobius. Eventually, Dark Sonic caught up to Eggman. He landed on the dome of the helicopter and latched onto it. He screamed in anger and grabbed the attachment parts that held the rotors to the body. He ripped it off and threw it at the other rotor on the other side of the helicopter. The ball dropped to the ground. Dark Sonic could hear Eggman screaming inside of the cockpit as they fell to the ground. The helicopter hit the earth and a missive pile of dirt was kicked up into the air, choking the air with floating dirt. Immediately after the crash, Eggman tried crawling out of the wreckage. He crawled for a few feet before something hot landed in front of him. It was dark purple and had robotic feet. Eggman looked up in terror at the figure. It was Dark Sonic, and he was quite angry. He growled at Eggman and knelt down in front of him. Dark Sonic stared directly into Eggman's robotic face.

"Time for you to go doctor." Sonic said in a half normal, half demon tone

Eggman turned white with fear and screamed. Dark Sonic picked him up by his red shirt and held him in the air, dangling his feet. Sonic's glowing white eyes had tears falling down them, as if he was crying.

"Sonic, please." Eggman begged

Sonic didn't hesitate. He punched Eggman in the face as hard as he could. He punched him again, and again, and again, and again. Sonic punched him until his nose was broken, his one eye was black, he had blood dripping from his mouth, and there were dents in his metal head. Sonic threw him to the ground and floated down. Eggman landed hard and lay there, crying. Sonic landed and rolled the old man over. He looked into Eggman's scared eye. Sonic grinned.

"My job is finished." He said

Eggman was horrified when Sonic began to laugh. But it was not a joyful laugh, it was an insane laugh, as if he had lost his mind. His laugh got higher pitched and more uncontrolled. Sonic then kicked Eggman with his metal feet. He kicked and kicked and kicked and kicked.

"Sonic, please." He mumbled

"No! My job is... Ha ha ha... finished with you!"

Sonic knelt down and continued to beat him with all his force. Sonic's punches grew harder and harder. They became violent and relentless. Now Eggman was crying and had labored breath. Sonic grabbed his head and violently raised it so he could see him.

"You did this to me. Ha ha ha... Now, I will make you pay. Ha ha ha... Peace will finally be restored. Ha ha ha." Sonic laughed

Sonic then took Eggman's head with both hands. He screamed with laughter and insane joy as he twisted Eggman's head violently. A loud snap came from his neck. Eggman's lifeless body was now in Sonic's hands. Sonic screamed with joy and looked down at the body. He dropped the body and stared at it.

"You... ha ha ha... are finished. Ha ha." He said

Sonic's quills slowly began to fall down. His eyes slowly turned normal and the dark purple energy stopped resonating off his body. Within seconds, Sonic was back to his somewhat normal self. That as when he realized what he had done. He began to breath fast as he looked down at the body. Tears continued to fall from his eyes. He put a hand over his mouth as he screamed in horror. He had just killed Dr. Eggman. But he didn't want to, he wanted to bring him into custody so he could turn off the robots. Looking at his blood soaked gloves, he screamed.

"No! What have I done?! No! EGGMAN!" Sonic screamed

He fell to his knees and cried over the dead body. He cried for several minutes over the body. His tears made a wet puddle on Eggman's red coat. Suddenly, a glowing hand rested on his shoulder. Ti felt soft and oddly familiar. Sonic slowly turned his head around to see who was touching him. What he saw both horrified him, and shocked him. He jumped back when he saw the figure.

"Sally?!" He yelled in disbelief

Standing behind him was Sally Acorn. But she was different. She was transparent and glowed white. Her warm blue eyes seemed to comfort Sonic. She slowly approached him and rested her ghostly hand on his chest. She put her other hand over her mouth, telling him to stop screaming.

"Don't be afraid Sonic my love." Sally said in a peaceful tone

"Y-you're d-dead!"

"I know that. I am your memory, your soul. We are here to tell you something very important." she said calmly

Sonic let down his guard a bit. The forest had gone completely quiet. No birds or animals were around. The orange sky of dusk made the world even more peaceful. It was as if this entire experience was supernatural.

"We?"

Suddenly, Elias, Bunnie, Rotor, and Antoine appeared behind Sally. They all were transparent and glowed white as well. They had peaceful expressions as they stared at Sonic.

"We are here to tell you that you are close." Sally said

"Close to what?"

"Close to bringing endless peace to Mobius. By killing Eggman, you are one step closer."

That was all Sonic ever dreamed of as soon as Eggman invaded the kingdom. He wanted to bring peace. That was what he so desperately wanted. Sonic would do anything to bring peace. Thankfully, peace was almost achieved.

"What else is there?" he asked

Elias slowly walked up and stood next to Sally. He put his ghostly hand on her shoulder.

"You must kill the remaining Freedom Fighters." He said calmly, as if it were nothing important

Sonic gasped in shock at the order. He could never do that, Amy and Tails were his only friends. He jumped back and stood in front of the ghosts. He clenched his blood soaked fists.

"No, they are my friends. Amy is my wife! I could never do that. I will never to that." Sonic said in an angry tone

A look of poorly hidden anger grew on the faces of the ghosts. Bunnie walked up.

"Sonic hun, don't ya want what's best for Mobius?" she asked with a disappointed voice

"Of course I do but..."

Rotor walked up next to Antoine. He interrupted Sonic.

"Then do it. Kill Amy and Tails." he said in an eager tone

"I-I can't. I won't." Sonic refused

Antoine walked up.

"You must. It is your destiny." He urged

Sonic couldn't take it.

"No!" he yelled

All the ghosts joined in, talking in one, eerie voice.

"You must Sonic. You know it's true. Don't deny it. Don't deny it. Bring peace. Bring the long awaited peace!?" They yelled

Sonic fell to his knees and put his hands on his forehead. He closed his eyes and screamed in frustration. He knew it was wrong, but something was telling him it was the right thing to do. He looked up at Sally and the rest and cried profusely. He couldn't stand their taunting, it was making him go insane. He put his hands on the ground and panted. Finally, after two minutes of their chanting, Sonic looked up at them. His face had turned to one of anger, but an insane smile spread across his face. All the thinking in his mind had disappeared. He had stopped thinking, he now was doing. Sonic slowly stood up without a sound and stared at the ghosts.

"Ha ha... Okay. Ha ha... Time for the Freedom Fighters. ha ha... to pay. Ha ha ha!" Sonic said insanely

The ghosts all smiled at him with a proud smile. They began to slowly fade away into the night. Sally was the last one to disappear. But before she disappeared, she said one last thing to the newly transformed Sonic.

"It is the emerald's will." She said

Sonic nodded quickly and laughed.

"Alright. Ha ha... lets go. Ha ha!" Sonic said insanely, sprinting towards the royal palace.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, this chapter has just made your minds explode. Now, Sonic is insane and can't control himself. Anyway, I hope you are more interested in the story now. The next few chapters will get a little chaotic. So, as always leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, ta ta!**


	12. Prepare

"**Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey His commands and do what please Him."**

**-1 John 3:21-22**

Tails and Amy stood out in the now empty airfield, awaiting the return of a particular osprey. Since the front line had been drastically moved closer, all available aircraft and vehicles were moved to the front. The empty field was almost ghost like. Indents in the grass where osprey land-gear had been placed dotted the field. Tents and some empty crates had been abandoned because they served no purpose. The air was now strangely quiet, no more propellers, jet engines, or yelling soldiers could be heard. The sky was now getting darker, the sun was almost completely below the horizon. Its orange hue colored the sky. Stars were just beginning to appear and the crescent moon was now shining. It was peaceful, but the ex-Freedom Fighters' thoughts were anything but peaceful. Tails was worried, the front line was now dangerously close, but reports were coming in saying the robots had stopped shooting. He was also concerned about the fate of both his friend, Sonic, and the survivors of the osprey crash. If the survivors were all dead, he couldn't learn anything from the intelligence they had supposedly obtained. Tails stood there with his arms behind his back, swinging back and forth on his legs. He was never good at hiding nervousness. Amy however, was worse than him. She had started pacing back and forth, mumbling to herself. Tails could occasionally make out words like "He promised" or "I knew he was too reckless". Amy was sweating, her three pink bangs drooping down from her sweat. Her worried expression made Tails feel incredibly guilty, he should never have sent Sonic on that mission.

"Mom!" yelled a high pitched female voice

Amy spun around and saw Clare running up to her. Clare's outfit had changed, Cream must have showed her around the royal dressing room. She was now in a dark blue miniskirt with a white stripe going across the bottom. She wore a pink T-shirt that had a small pocket on the right breast. The V-neck was a little too low for Amy's standards, she never liked cleavage, but it wasn't too concerning. Her purple quills were different however, her quills were now in a pony tail. Her two pink bangs draped over her left eye. Amy was amazed by what Cream had done her daughter. She had made her beautiful. However, her beautiful clothing turned meaningless when Amy saw Clare's expression. She was almost ready to cry. Her green eyes were sad and worried. She ran up to Amy and hugged her. Amy embraced her hug and held on tightly.

"What is it Clare?" Amy asked worriedly

Clare pulled away and looked up at her.

"Are Dad and Sparky coming home soon?" she asked, almost mumbling

Amy grinned and nodded slowly. She kissed Clare's forehead and wrapped her arm around Clare's shoulder.

"Lets wait for them together huh?" Amy asked in a joking voice

So the three waited for the osprey, which Tails had sent out to pick up Sparky and the rest. After a couple long and quiet minutes, the sounds of rotor blades began to echo through the air. The sounds grew until it was almost deafening. It was completely dark out when the osprey's green and red navigation lights could be seen. The black form descended and blew air violently in every direction. Amy and Clare had to make sure their dresses did not fly up from the wind. Eventually, the loud rotors and the gusting wind died down. The sounds of metal hydraulics lowering the troop bay door was the next noise. The red light of the troop bay pierced the dark air and the trio could see who was inside. Inside the troop bay were three figures dressed in black combat uniforms and helmets. There was another black figure, carrying a bow and quiver. Finally, there was a figure in a purple hood and cape. The hood covered the mysterious figure's face and features. They group of animals walked out of the osprey. Tails and Amy greeted the special forces team first.

"What happened?" asked Tails

"Nothing much, a few tin cans were left, but nothing. No Sonic, just these two." Replied the spec ops leader, taking off his helmet.

Clare watched with unknown amounts of joy as Sparky stepped off the ramp. He was covered in bandages and medical pads. They were blood soaked, but appeared not to be very serious. When he spotted Clare, his expression softened. He put his bow away and spread out his arms. Clare ran up to him and hugged him. She felt his rough fur against her's. He smelled like sweat, smoke, and motor oil. He embraced her hug and felt her soft, cherry-scented fur.

"Oh Sparky, I was so worried. If something happened to you, I don't know what I would do." She said

Sparky patted her lightly on the head. She pulled back and he brushed her bangs back, he then smiled.

"Don't worry about me, besides, I met a new friend. You may like her, she's our age." he said pleasantly

Clare let go and looked at him with confusion as he turned around. He beckoned with his arm for the hooded figure to walk over. Clare stared at the hooded figure with doubt. The figure stood next to Sparky. It appeared to be wearing a black dress with a white cross going down and across it. Its hands were concealed behind the cloak. It was a girl, judging by the dress. Her features were hidden behind the shadow of the hood and the dark night. Only her muzzle showed. It was one that looked quite young and pretty, almost perfect. The figure grinned at Clare and held out her gloved hand.

"Hi there, you must be Clare. Sparky told me all about you." greeted the almost angelic voice

Clare slowly shook her hand.

"Yeah, Clare, this is Lilly. She saved me in Robotropolis and after the osprey crashed. I owe her double." Sparky said, joking at the last part

"Yep, and by your track record, you may owe me a lot more soon." Lilly Joked

Clare didn't like this hooded girl. Lilly pulled down her hood, revealing her light red fur and long quills. She had one large bang covering one of her blue eyes. She was stunning. How could a girl be so pretty and so tough? Clare put one hand on her hip and looked Lilly over. She smiled at Clare and then looked over at Sparky.

"Hey Sparks, is that the royal palace back there?" Lilly asked in amazement

Sparky turned his head around and then looked back.

"Why yes it is. Want to go see it?" he asked

Lilly nodded her head and they both started walking towards the palace. Clare stood there in shock at what just happened. That girl had just called Sparky "Sparks"! She was flirting with him, and he was flirting with her! Nobody steals Clare's man, nobody. Clare filled with rage and was turning red. She clenched her fists as she watched the two hedgehogs walk towards the palace. Sparky turned around and waved to Clare.

"Come on Clare, lets show Lilly around!" he called

Clare tried her best to hide her anger and ran over to Sparky and Lilly, who were walking a little too close to each other for Clare's liking. As they walked along, Clare noticed Sparky and Lilly were talking like old friends. They were talking about things she had never heard about. They talked about bow strings, and arching of arrows, arrow feathers, arrowhead designs, wind direction and its effect on arrows, and how quickly they could aim their weapons. This girl was an archer, not good. Clare was shocked when Lilly pulled out her crossbow and showed Sparky how the cocking mechanism worked. Sparky looked at it with child like enthusiasm. He turned his head towards Clare.

"Clare are you seeing this? Lilly has a phase II version of the legendary half-speed crossbow. Man, this thing is famous!" Sparky said with excitement dripping from his voice

Clare looked at the blue crossbow with disgust.

"Hmm, Sparky's bow is better." She said in an unimpressed tone

Sparky and Lilly looked at her with shocked faces. She must have said something wrong.

"Clare I use an ancient English Longbow that Rob found in a cave. It is nowhere near as good as this thing." Sparky said as if it were common knowledge

Clare felt incredibly stupid and embarrassed by what she had said. She then noticed Lilly elbowing Sparky in the gut.

"Don't worry, someday I am sure she will be as smart as you are." Lilly said in a joking voice

Sparky laughed.

"By that time I'll be as smart as you." he replied

It was true, they were flirting with each other. Clare boiled with rage and felt like screaming. She had never competed for a boy before, but she was not about to start now. This was not what she needed right now. Her dad was missing, the kingdom was in distress, her mom was crying all the time now. Sparky was the one person who kept her from breaking down as well. He had been encouraging her, telling her she could do it ever since he had rescued them. Clare wanted to cry, but big girls don't cry. A female white bat had told her that once. The best Clare could do was wait, wait for them to fight, then she would be there. So she walked along with the two hedgehogs, but hardly ever talked.

"That is what I'm telling you sir, we didn't see him anywhere. We checked the entire area, looked for any life signatures in the area, but found nothing. There were only robot tracks in the ground." Reported the one of the pilots.

Tails was about to pull his hair out in frustration.

"Damn it, he has robotic feet! His tracks are robot tracks you idiot! Did you not learn that he lost his legs in history class?!" Tails yelled

Tails and Amy were trying desperately to find where Sonic was. But it seems he had lost them. There was no way to communicate, signal, or call for him. He was on his own, he was dead, they didn't know. Amy was asking another trooper what they saw. They were all still standing outside the osprey. The lights of the troop bay and the navigation lights provided enough visibility to see.

"We didn't see anything. There were a couple burned footprints in the ground, but they didn't lead anywhere. But Sonic can't fly, and he wasn't abducted." Said the soldier

Tails walked over to Amy. The soldier walked away to grab his gear. Tails sighed and put his hands on his hips. Amy wiped away sweat and exhaled.

"If only those two hedgehogs had not run off to tour the palace. It could take hours to find them in that mansion. Why did Elias have to build such a big house?" Tails said, trying to lighten the mood

"I don't know Tails, but we need to figure out where Sonic is soon. Clare will want to know." Amy replied

Suddenly, one of the pilots ran out of the troop bay. His helmet's black visor was up, revealing his scared eyes. The bird's face was white with fear and he appeared to be trembling. He stopped in front of Tails and Amy and inhaled.

"Sir, we just received a distress call from fire-base Werehog. They've been attacked." the pilot said nervously

Tails seemed to not care at all about the news. His face did not change.

"So what, that base has been under attack for days. We know this, why is this message special?" Tails said

The pilot swallowed hard.

"Because it wasn't attacked by robots." he replied

Tails' face changed to one of surprise. He started walking towards the cockpit. He stood by the door as the pilot sat down in the seat. Amy walked up and stood next to Tails. She was nervous.

"What's going on?" she asked

Tails didn't look at her.

"Play the message." he ordered in a flat tone

The pilot nodded and pressed a button on the control panel. Static filled the speakers of the osprey, then, a poor quality message played. It was a man talking, he was whispering and sounded in pain. The sounds of explosions and crying voices almost overtook his voice.

"This is Private Price of the 23rd armored division. This is a call to all channels, if you are receiving, take note and pass this on to King Prower. At 21:00 hours, we were under attack by robots. At 21:30 hours, something blue attacked the robots. It destroyed them all with monster like ferocity. After it was done fighting the robots, it stood over a pile of the dead machines. It was Sonic, I repeat, Sonic the Hedgehog. His legs were robotic and he was wearing a brown cloak. He seemed insane, laughing like a joker at all of us. He said we should no longer raid villages and take their food and money for taxes. He proceeded to attack the base with merciless efficiency. Within three minutes, the entire base, and everyone but me was either killed or injured. This is a message to all the kingdom, Sonic the Hedgehog is hostile. I repeat, Sonic the Hedgehog is hostile." the call ended and static took over.

Tails quickly looked down at the time on the control panel. It read 22:00 hours. Tails stumbled and almost fell to the ground. He looked over at Amy. She was breathing quickly and looking at the floor. She had her hand over her chest and couldn't stop breathing fast. She looked over at Tails with a horrified stare. Tails grabbed her and shook her violently.

"Amy, snap out of it. Amy!" Tails yelled

Amy didn't stop breathing quickly. Tails then did something he would regret, but had to be done. He smacked Amy. She immediately stopped breathing fast and looked at him. She rubbed her cheek and stared at him with a scared and genuinely terrified face.

"T-that can't be t-true. Sonic w-would never d-do such a thing l-like that." She said in confusion

Tails let go of her and folded his arms. He leaned back against the wall and stared at the ground.

"Amy, we need to act fast." Tails said, looking up at Amy. "Follow me."

Tails began quickly walking out of the osprey. Amy followed close behind him. He was walking to the palace. She followed him. He never said a word to her as they walked through the palace. While walking down a hallway, they past Sparky, Lilly, and Clare. Clare noticed them and jogged up to Tails.

"Sir, what is going on?" She asked "Where is my dad?"

Tails didn't look at her. He kept on walking with Amy following behind her.

"He is somewhere where he shouldn't be." Tails replied grimly

Clare stopped and stared at the two as they rushed through the hallway. She was confused and had no idea what they were panicking about. Clare watched them and shook her head slowly, exhaling.

Amy looked back at Clare and then back at Tails.

"What is going on?" she asked

Tails didn't look back, but kept on speed-walking.

"I think I may know, but I'm not quite sure. I need to look at the data to figure this out." He said

Amy followed Tails to an unpainted wooden door. It looked like a closet door, nothing special. Tails stopped and slowly opened it. They both walked slowly into the dark room. Amy heard a click and then a single light turned on. It hung from the ceiling by a chain. The room was small, no bigger than a bathroom. There were no windows. The smell of coffee and overheating printers filled the room. The walls were wood panels and the floor was dark green carpet. Hundreds of statistics and data papers were taped to the walls. A single desk covered in papers was on the far end of the room. Tails walked over to the desk and started shuffling through papers. Amy examined the papers on the walls. They had titles saying "Frontal lobe tests" or "Recent brain activity spikes". Amy wondered what all these papers meant. She walked over to Tails and grabbed his shoulder. She spun him around and stared at him hard.

"Tails, what is going on. Tell me so I can help." she said seriously

Tails stopped moving and calmed himself down. He leaned back on the desk and sighed.

"A few years after Sonic and Rob fought us and killed Elias, I began thinking. Sonic must have had some sort of shock from that experience. Nobody kills almost all their childhood friends and walks away without regret. So I started doing studies."

"What type of studies?"

"Studies that were named other things such as "Brain virus testing". Don't you remember Sonic being part of all those studies?"

Amy nodded slowly.

"Well, those studies were not for brain viruses, they were brain activity tests. We found something very strange. Mentally, Sonic seems fine, he doesn't show any signs of going berserk or crazy at all. But we found something strange. Sonic's subconscious was telling him his heart rate was up, his breathing was fast, adrenaline was pumping, his eyes were dilated. This all meant that subconsciously, he was in a fighting state. He appeared, and felt, as if he was no longer fighting us, but subconsciously, he still was. We found it had been this way since he first began fighting us."

"Is that even possible?"

"I guess it is. The second thing we found is that when we recontacted Knuckles, he said that the Master Emerald had been doing some crazy things about the same time that Elias died. The Master Emerald had been glowing bright and radiating heat, nothing that Knuckles had ever seen before. We kept in contact with Knuckles ever since. He has been sending us monthly reports on the Emerald's state. It has not changed since that day. We are thinking that something is going on between Sonic's state, and the Emerald's glow."

"How would they be connected?"

"I'm still not sure. One possibility is that since Sonic has consumed so many power rings, and has turned Super Sonic so many times, that he is divinely connected with the Master Emerald in a way that we do not understand. It could be that the Master Emerald is causing Sonic to stay in this fighting state."

"Okay that is all good. But what does this have to do with him attacking the royal army base?"

"It is possible that his subconscious has finally let out that fighting state. It is possible that he no longer thinks that the Dark Times are over. He may think we are still attacking villages, and he is still the "Ghost". But I have no idea what would cause this."

"Could it be something relating to his past, a memory or person rekindles those thoughts?"

"Possibly, but what would have caused that?"

Tails looked down and shook his head. He looked back up at her with a regretful face.

"I think I am the reason for all of this."

Amy was shocked by the news.

"How?!"

"By giving him the robotic legs, I think I rekindled his memory. It was probably that, and it was mistake." Tails said with a pessimistic tone

Amy considered all of what she had just heard. It was a shocking revelation to her. She never thought that Sonic would still be fighting the Freedom Fighters in his mind. This was a serous problem. Sonic was on the loose, believing he was still the "Ghost", a huge army of robots was fighting the kingdom, and Clare seemed quite depressed while they were walking. It would take a miracle to save them. Amy looked at Tails with a sympathetic face.

"Well then, we need to get those legs off of him. Maybe that would help him." Amy said slowly

Tails shook his head.

"The only way to take those legs off of him is to either take them off, causing excessive bleeding and possible nerve damage, or destroy the legs... and him." Tails said, tearing up at his final words

Amy jumped back in horror.

"No! We will not hurt Sonic like that. I could never bring myself to do that! There has to be another way!" She exclaimed

Tails looked down and exhaled.

"We will discuss this later. First, we need to make sure this place is safe. If he is coming to end this fight, we need to be ready for him." Tails said, leaning forwards and walking out

Amy followed behind Tails. They closed the door and went to go find Cream and the others. They needed to be ready for Sonic's arrival. But how could they? How could they hurt their friend, their brother, their husband, their father? They couldn't fight him. They couldn't.

Sonic was perched up on a branch of a tree. He looked out in the distance and saw the lights from the windows of the royal Palace. The massive palace's lights shined like lighting-bugs. Sonic's demented face stared at the palace. His evil, insane grin spread across his face. He breathed heavily and let out a crazed laugh occasionally. He looked down at his feet. His robotic feet. The feet of Metal Sonic. He laughed and looked back up.

"Now. Ha ha ha... now it is time. Ha ha ha... to finish this fight. Ha ha ha... Tails, Amy. Ha ha ha... you're next." he said to himself

His voice was slightly higher pitched and eager. Suddenly, his ear twitched. He heard a soft female's voice. It was Sally's.

"You know what to do. Go."

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, how was that? I personally laughed myself while writing the first half. I think you all will laugh, it is a little teen drama mixed into this dark and serious story. Anyway, that is it for me. As always please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, pa pa!**


	13. Crown

"**Be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you: to love the Lord your God with, to walk in all His ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul."**

**-Joshua 22:5**

Tails and Amy were walking down one of the main hallways. They walked past the relics of the "Dark Times". Amy looked at them with amazement. Tails had saved almost every single artifact that held importance during their time as teenagers. The relics were held in their glass containers that protected them from the environment. She had never realized how many memories she had until this time. They were memories of love, hate, adventure, danger, and excitement. She saw everything from her Piko Piko Hammer to the fake Chaos Emerald. But the final case, she stopped to see. She let out a small gasp when she realized what it was. It was the "Ghost's" hood and cape. His scarf was there as well.

"Tails, wait." She said

Tails stopped and turned around and looked at her. He was annoyed and frustrated, he had more important things to do.

"Amy, we can't stop now, we have to prepare for Sonic's arrival." he said

Amy put a finger up to tell him to wait a minute. She gazed at the ghostly costume with a sense of reverence that she had never shown to anything else. That hood and cape and scarf meant so much more to her than a symbol of freedom. It was her connection to Sonic and their love. The hedgehog that had used that costume loved her. The hedgehog that used that costume was her hero. The hedgehog that wore that costume was the one who was going to try and kill her. Amy slowly walked up to the case and put her palm on the glass. She closed her eyes and rested her forehead on it. Amy knew she had to do something, something that could possibly save them. She reopened her eyes with a fierce look in them. She growled and pulled out her hammer. She pulled her hammer back and prepared to swing.

"This is for you Sonic!" She screamed

"Amy, what are you doing!?" Tails yelled

But it was too late, Amy smashed the glass with her hammer. The hammer disappeared and she grabbed the hood and cape and scarf. She rolled them up into a ball and looked over at Tails, who was in shock. She started walked past him, towards their destination. As she walked by, Tails watched her with his mouth open.

"Someone has to save this thing." She said in a determined voice

Tails shook himself out of the shock and followed her. After a long walk, Tails and Amy saw Clare, Sparky, Lilly, and Cream standing around, talking. Amy's heart broke when she saw Clare standing back with a sad expression. She noticed Sparky, Lilly, and Cream having a lively conversation. Clare was being left out. This new hedgehog whom Amy had not met yet seemed to be the focus of Sparky's attention. Clare was being left out, and she knew it. Amy wished Sonic were here, he knew how to handle things like this. Tails and Amy walked up to them, interrupting the conversation.

"Sorry to break up the talk, but this is important. Cream, I need you to do something very important, understand?" Tails said seriously

"Anything." Cream said

Cream was now more independent, she was a woman. She was a queen, and she acted like one. She knew how to be mature and how to be a wise ruler. She was so much more mature than Amy, despite her age. Amy wished she had grown up as much as her friend had over the past 20 years.

"I need you to take the remaining relics, the constitution, and any other political document that is vital to the kingdom, and go to the bomb shelter to the west." Tails ordered

Cream's face turned confused.

"Why do you need me to do that?" she asked as if he were joking.

"The palace is in danger, just do it. I will see you soon." Tails said, taking her head gently and kissing her.

He pulled away and Cream nodded. She knew her duty, she knew to follow his orders. Cream turned around and walked down the hallway to the relics. Tails turned around and looked at Sparky, Clare, and Lilly.

"Clare-"

Suddenly, a guard ran up and interrupted Tails. He was a badger who was panting and was terrified. He saluted them, then looked at Tails. Tails looked at him with a disturbed expression.

"What is it?" he asked

"Sir, we have an unknown contact heading for the palace. It is small and moving slowly. Out look-outs can't make out who it is, all we know is that it's blue."

Tails' face turned grim. His eyes began to panic and dart around. He and Amy both began to grow incredibly nervous. This was bad, Sonic was coming sooner than he hoped. Tails turned around and looked at Sparky and Lilly. He needed to get these two weapons.

"Sparky, you and the girl go with this soldier. He will take you to the armory, outfit yourselves with whatever you need. Then report back to me, understand?"

Sparky and Lilly nodded quickly. They jogged with the soldier down a hallway to the armory. Sparky and Lilly followed the soldier for a long time. They finally made it to a large steel door. A key pad was located on the side of it. The soldier pressed a combination in and the large door slowly slid open, making a screeching sound. The smell of gun powder and explosives filled their noses. Sparky and Lilly slowly walked in, looking around in awe. Weapons of every type lined the walls. Racks of guns, grenades, bombs, and even body armor lined every wall. Sparky grinned and ran over to a rack of arrows. He inspected each one with a huge smile on his face. They were black arrows with metal shafts and plastic tails.

"C4 explosive tips, net launching container heads, taser equipped points, I love this." Sparky said with a childish laugh

Clare giggled at him and slowly walked up to a rack of crossbow bolts. She grabbed all of them and placed them all in one of the pouches on her dress. She would inspect them later. She looked over at Sparky, who was loading smoke-grenades into one of the pouches on his belt. She was not as happy as him.

"Sparky, do you know what's going on?" She asked

Sparky turned his head and stared at her with a now distressed face. He hesitated on his answer.

"I don't know Lilly, but I am afraid of what it might be." he said quietly

"What do you think it might be?" she asked again

Sparky looked at her with a depressed face.

"It might be Sonic." he replied gravely

Clare looked down and stared at the floor. She knew he was probably right. It was a sad thing to think. Sonic, the legend she had heard so much about, fighting for evil. Lilly picked up a few flash-grenades and put them in one of her pouches. She turned around and Sparky and her walked out of the armory. Suddenly, a massive explosion shook throughout the palace. Sparky, Lilly, and the soldier fell to the ground. A siren began going off and all the lights turned red. Sparky helped Lilly up and they looked around. The soldier stood up and pulled out his radio. Yelling and confusion could be heard spamming the radio. The soldier yelled into it.

"What the hell was that?" he yelled

"Something has just destroyed the western wall of the palace. We think it might be... oh shit!" the radio suddenly turned to static and white noise.

The soldier threw the radio on the floor. He looked at Sparky and Lilly with a scared look.

"Come on, we need to get back to King Prower." he said

Another explosion rocked the building. Smoke began to fill the air and it was becoming very hot. Fire could be seen licking the walls in the distance. They ran back to where Tails and the rest had been standing. Tails, Amy, and Clare had a small group of guards standing around them. Tails was giving out orders as fast as he could.

"Captain, get every available guard out here and battle ready. Sargent, make sure the queen gets out safely. You two, stay with me, we are leaving." Tails barked

Sparky, Lilly, and the soldier ran up and stopped. Sparky saw Clare standing to the side, crying. Amy was beside her, trying to comfort her. Sparky ignored everything at that moment, Clare was crying, that was all that mattered. He slowly walked up to her, despite the explosions, and gently perked her chin up with his hand. She looked at him with blood-shot eyes. He let a small grin appear.

"Don't worry Clare, everything will be okay. Trust me. I won't let anything happen to you." Sparky promised

Clare suddenly turned angry and slapped his hand away.

"Is your dad about to kill us all?! No! You're a liar and a cheater!" She screamed, crying at the end

Sparky was taken aback by her outburst. What had he done? He couldn't think of anything that would have caused her to get mad at him. Sparky slowly backed away and stood by Tails. Another explosion shook the palace. It was now getting incredibly hot and everybody was sweating. Amy looked over at Clare and hugged her.

"It's okay Clare, we are going to be okay. Don't worry, I can protect you, and the rest of them will as well." Amy said, trying to comfort Clare

Suddenly, another explosion shook the palace. Everybody stumbled around from the shock wave. It was close. The wall of one of the hallways exploded, letting a huge fireball consume the area around it. After they all regained their balance, one of the guards screamed.

"Contact!" He screamed

Everybody turned to the direction that the guard had screamed. What they saw terrified them and shook them all to their core. A fire had erupted and was lighting up the entire hallway. Walking in front of the fire was a figure. It was Sonic. His brown cloak was torn and burnt. His eyes were crazed and insane. He was smiling with an unnaturally pleasant smile. He seemed to be chuckling sometimes. His robotic feet made a faint motor noise as they moved and a metallic clinking noise when they hit the floor. He kept slowly walking forward, his eyes never blinking. He snickered as he walked up to them. He stopped a couple meters from the group. The soldiers formed up around the group and aimed their weapons at Sonic. Sonic looked at them and laughed. His laugh was insane and high pitched.

"I found you Tails. Ha ha ah... You tricked me those many years ago. You made me think you were a good guy. Ha ha ha... But I've figured it out. Y-you will always be a Freedom Fighter. Ha ha ha..."

Tails walked forward and stood in front of the soldiers. He kept a stoic look on his face, hiding his nervousness.

"Sonic, please. This is not you. We all know that the Freedom Fighters were killed 20 years ago. You killed them yourself. Understand that we are not the enemy. Amy is your wife. Clare is your daughter. And I am the King that you appointed. Please stand down, we can help you." Tails said calmly

Sonic's face turned angry and he clenched his fists.

"You and Amy are still Freedom Fighters! You always have been, always will be. I saw how you raided the villages, and you beat the villagers. Amy tricked me into loving her. It would make me an easier target. And you. Look at these legs! You did this! Your grenade took my legs away from me! I will kill you both for what you've done to me!" Sonic screamed

Amy began to cry. How could he do this to them? Just the other day he was a loving husband and a caring father. Amy looked over at Clare, who was equally distressed. Amy noticed Tails stepping back slowly. He got behind the line of guards and back to Amy.

"Go to the Freedom Fighter HQ. Don't tell them where we are going though. Sonic may be listening when we get to the woods." Tails whispered quietly

Amy looked at him with a surprised look. She did not expect that to be the place they would run to. It wasn't far away however, and it probably still had a working generator. Amy nodded slowly and took Clare's arm. She pulled Clare's ear close.

"Follow me and be quiet about it." Amy whispered

Clare nodded quickly and stepped back behind Amy.

Sparky had had enough of this. He pulled out an arrow and loaded it into his bow. Lilly did the same thing and they both aimed at Sonic. Sonic saw them and grinned. Tails nodded to one of the guards and they turned the safeties off on their rifles. Sonic heard the clicking sound and frowned.

"Are you going to kill me?" He asked

Sparky took a step forward, pulling his bow back further.

"Sir, we are going to help you, just stand down." Sparky said calmly

"So they can get rid of my legs and have the Freedom Fighters lay waste to the kingdom?! NO!"

Sonic sprinted forward. He was too quick for everyone. He snapped a guard's neck. He jumped up and quickly lay waste to the guards. They didn't even have time to scream before they were all dead. He killed them with animal-like ferocity. Sparky, Lilly, and Tails began to walk backwards. Tails looked over at Amy and nodded. Amy took Clare's hand and they sprinted away from the battle. Once they were gone, Tails looked back at Sonic. He looked back just in time to see a dead guard's body fly at him. It hit him and he fell back. His crown fell off and made a ringing sound as the gold hit the floor. Sparky shot and arrow at Sonic. Sonic dodged it and ran at the hedgehog. He kicked Sparky back and he flew through the air and hit a wall. He fumbled over and lay on the floor, groaning. Lilly pulled her hood up and shot at Sonic. Again, he dodged the bolt and ran for her. Before he reached however, she had pulled out a flash-grenade. She pulled the pin and tossed it at him. It hit his forehead and he stopped, wondering what had hit him. He looked down at the thin black tube with a red stripe across it. Lilly ran away and tackled Tails.

"Everybody, cover your ears and eyes!" She screamed

Sparky ad Tails did what she said just in time. The grenade exploded, letting out a flash as bright as the sun, and creating a noise louder than a low-flying jet plane. Sonic jumped back from the shock of the grenade. His ears rang and his vision was temporarily blinded. Clare saw this and stood up.

"Come on, lets get out of here!" She ordered

Sparky shook himself of the shock and stood up, grabbing his bow. Tails stood up and began to sprint in the direction Amy had ran.

"This way!" he yelled

Lilly and Sparky ran after him. They ran into the darkness, out of sight of Sonic. Sparky pulled out a smoke-grenade and threw it behind them. A large cloud of thick black smoke filled the hallway. It covered their retreat nicely.

Sonic slowly recovered from the flash-grenade. His vision was still blurred and his hearing was still dulled. He stumbled around like a drunk. After a few minutes of stumbling, his vision and hearing finally cleared. He was alone in the burning palace. Smoke was starting to become noticeable. He noticed something lying on the floor. Sonic slowly walked forward and picked up the object. It was Tails' crown. He inspected the crown. It was small and humble. Emeralds, rubies, and diamonds lined the edges of it. Sonic held it up and laughed. He then noticed the cloud of thick black smoke that was not natural. A smoke-grenade had gone off. Sonic walked through the smoke, towards a door to the outside of the palace. The door was open, letting the breeze of the outside into the palace. Sonic walked out and stood a couple meters from the burning palace. The flames lit up the treeline and the forest in the distance. He couldn't see his victims, they had escaped. Sonic searched the treeline for a few more minutes. He then let out a demonic laugh.

"Fine! You think you can run?! Ha ha ha... Well you are wrong, I will liberate this kingdom, and everybody will know the name "Ghost"!" Sonic screamed

Sparky, Lilly, and Tails were running through the dark forest. They ran as fast as they could. Lilly would occasionally turned back and aim her crossbow, just in case he was following them. They continued to run through the forest as fast as they could. They dodged trees, bushes, and rocks. Eventually, they stopped. They all were panting heavily. Tails and Lilly sat down. Sparky pulled out a green chemical-light. He cracked it and tossed it on the ground. An eerie green light barely lit up the area around them. Sparky looked at Lilly, her hood was over her head, casting a ghostly look. They were all panting. He looked at Tails, his face was tired and scared. Sparky never thought the king of the Acorn Kingdom would have to do something like this. Sparky knelt down and pulled out a map. He spread it out and placed the chemical-light on it. He pointed to a spot on the map.

"We're here. Where do we go now?" Sparky said

Tails leaned over and pointed at a spot an inch away from their point.

"There. That is where Amy and Clare will be meeting us." Tails said, panting

Sparky was confused by this.

"Why there? There is nothing there but forest. What makes that point special?" Sparky asked

Tails chuckled and leaned back against a tree. He closed his eyes and smiled.

"They really didn't teach you anything at school did they?" he said, chuckling

Sparky and Lilly were confused. They stared at the spot that Tails had pointed to. There was nothing there, just forest. How would Amy and Clare know where they were going?

Amy and Clare had been running for a long time. They never let up, they never stopped running. Clare had begun to get tired and was slowing down. Amy had begun to slow down as well. Clare eventually stopped and asked for Amy stop. She leaned against a tree and sat down. Amy was standing with her hammer in one hand and a ball of black fabric in the other. She had an alert face, she was focused, she was in her element. It had been a long time since she had been on the run from something, but it felt natural to her. Clare was not like her mother. She was unprepared for this and scared. She was cold and began shivering. Clare wrapped her arms around herself and shivered.

"M-mom, w-what's that i-in your h-hand?" Clare asked, her teeth chattering

Amy put away her hammer and unfurled the black ball of cloth. It was an old hood and cape. It was black and had tears all over it. A gray scarf dropped to the ground as well. It was torn and one side of it was sun-bleached. Amy stared at the fabric with a loving smile. Clare was confused. Why was her mom so fond of this ugly cloak? Amy let a tear fall. She held it out and Clare took it. She wrapped herself in it and wrapped the scarf around her neck. She pulled the hood over her head. It was warm. Amy saw her daughter wrapped in the "Ghost's" clothing. Amy let another tear fall when she saw the resemblance between Clare and Sonic. Clare continued to look at Amy with a puzzled face.

"Mom, what is this thing?" she asked

Amy shook herself out of her trance and stared at Clare.

"That used to belong to your father. I gave it to him to keep him warm the day he left the Freedom Fighters. He used that hood and cape and scarf to hide his identity from the Freedom Fighters, and me." Amy said softly

Clare was now even more confused.

"What do you mean hide from you?" she asked

Amy fell silent. She looked down at the ground, trying to hold back tears.

"We had a fight the day he left the Freedom Fighters. He said he hated me and never wanted me to chase after him again. But that wasn't true, he did love me. But he didn't want to show that it was him. So he portended to be a different person. I was tricked by him and I fell in love with his fake name. "Jules". He hid from me and from everybody else with that cloak and scarf. Those things are a symbol of hope, love, and rebellion in the kingdom. Now you are wearing it." Amy explained

Clare looked at herself in amazement. She was wearing what her father wore before her. She too was wearing it in a similar situation. She thought to herself. She was literally taking her father's place, wearing what he wore.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. Done, your first look at Sonic fighting his friends. I don't have a lot to say anymore, but I want to know if I should do a mother's day oneshot or not. So, as always please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, pa pa!**


	14. Clare

"**Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."**

**-Ephesians 5:2**

Clare slowly opened her tired eyes. She had curled up into a ball and had fallen asleep last night. It was surprising that she could sleep during a time like this. Clare slowly fluttered her eyelids, trying to wake up. She yawned and slowly began to take in her surroundings. It was a beautiful sight. The forests of the Acorn Kingdom were the most beautiful things she had ever seen. Beams of light shown down, making dust glitter in the wind. The bright green of the trees' leaves made it even brighter. A faint rustle of leaves and the songs of birds gave a pleasant melody to the scene. The grass swayed back and forth, and flowers dotted the ground. Bushes and rocks also filled the ground as well. Fallen and decaying trees could be seen in the distance. It was an absolutely beautiful sight.

Clare slowly rolled over and sat up. She remembered she was wearing the black hood and cape. It had proven to be a nice blanket in the night. Clare, now fully awake, looked around. She noticed a small campfire was burning a few feet away from her. Propped up over the fire was a rock that had two frying eggs on it. Clare looked at it in wonder. Who had made the humble little breakfast? Clare then remembered that her mom, Amy, was with her as well. However, Clare couldn't see her mother anywhere. She was alone next to the small cooking fire. Clare slowly stood up and pulled the hood down on her cloak. She took it off and rolled it up. It was too hot. Clare looked around and scratched her head in confusion. She began to get worried. She cupped her hands around her mouth.

"Mom?!" she yelled

Silence followed. Clare walked over to the fire and sat down. She stared at the sizzling eggs with a ravenous stare. She was very hungry, and those eggs looked delicious. Suddenly, the sound of twigs cracking and bushes rustling came from behind her. Clare spun around and looked in the direction of the noises with fear. Whoever it was had already frightened her. She wasn't as tough as her parents, or Sparky, or Lilly, or even King Prower. The noises grew louder and louder. Eventually, a figure popped out of one of the bushes behind her. It was a pink hedgehog. It was Amy. Clare let out a sigh of reliefe and relaxed. Amy looked at her and smiled.

"Glad to see you're awake." Amy said cheerfully

Amy knew what had happened the previous night, and she would do everything in her power to make sure Clare would not be too affected by it. But that may be too late. The best thing she could do now is just act happy, and keep her spirits up.

"Hey mom." Replied Clare

Amy walked over and sat down next to Clare. She picked up a stick and poked at the eggs. She also appeared to have something in her left hand. Clare was amazed by what her mother had been doing since she had been sleeping.

"Mom, did you make this fire? And, where did you get the eggs?" Clare asked in wonder

Amy giggled and opened her left hand. She was holding a handful of strawberries. She placed them down between them and continued poking the eggs.

"You know, I may be a working mom, but I had quite a bit of training when I was your age." She said, giggling

Clare cocked her head in wonder. Amy took the eggs off the rock and put them on smaller flat rocks. She gave one to Clare and kept the other.

"What do you mean?" asked Clare

Amy took a bite of her eggs.

"I mean, when I was a Freedom Fighter, I was trained how to survive in the woods. I was trained how to make fires, catch smaller animals, collect bird eggs, and know which berries were poisonous. Something that I hope you never have to learn." Amy said

Clare nodded and ate her eggs. They finished their meal in silence. After their meal was finished, Amy put out the fire, but Clare had one more question.

"But its been a long time since you were a Freedom Fighter. How do you still remember all that?"

Amy looked over at her and a sad expression grew on her. She stopped what she was doing and sighed. She looked down at the ground and sniffled.

"It is just something that I remember. Your father and I, we remember everything that happened when we were teenagers. We promised each other never to forget any part of our past..." Amy paused for a long time, then continued. "Come on, we need to get to the place where we will meet Tails and the others." Amy said quietly

Clare suddenly remembered why they were out in the woods. Last night, her father, Sonic, had tried to kill them all. She had no idea why this would happen. Didn't he love them? He was acting insane and crazy. He kept on saying things that made no sense, like raiding villages, and taxing people. He had destroyed the entire royal palace and killed hundreds of guards. Clare couldn't believe that just a few days ago he had promised that he would go shopping with her. It was a harrowing experience that she was not physically, or emotionally prepared for. However, her thoughts were interrupted by Amy.

"Come on Clare, we need to go." She said

Clare shook herself out of her thoughts and stood up. Amy looked at her and let a small grin appear.

"You got the hood and cape and scarf?" Amy asked

Clare nodded, showing the ball of black cloth. Amy smiled and turned around. They began walking through the forest. To Clare, it seemed they were walking blindly, but to Amy, they were right on track. Clare looked around in amazement at the scenery. Although it was just a forest, she was always awestruck by its beauty. They continued walking for a long time. Clare began to slowly doubt if her mom knew where they were going.

"Mom."

"Yes?"

"Do you know where we are going? And does Sparky and the others know where we are going?"

Amy giggled.

"Of course Tails knows where he is going. They should arrive there at the same time as us. By the way. Can you tell me about that red hedgehog girl that was talking to Sparky? He seemed quite interested in her." Amy said, trying to learn a bit more about the mysterious new addition to the team.

Clare made a mocking laugh of hatred and shook her head, chuckling.

"Her name is Lilly. Boy is she a pain. She and Sparky would not stop talking about arrows and bows and other archery stuff. They flirted a bit as well, it was just terrible to be anywhere near them. But I like Sparky, and I don't want this girl to come between us." Clare said

Amy slowed down and wrapped her arm around Clare's shoulders.

"Didn't it ever occur to you that Sparky showed quite a bit of affection for you before he met Lilly?" Amy asked

"Yeah, but now they have met each other, and they're flirting." Clare said in defeat

"Never give up hope on the one you love Clare. If you love them, chances are, they love you. Take it from me, I know." Amy said, chuckling

"How would you know mom? Dad loves you a lot." Clare asked

Amy sighed and giggled.

"Back when we were younger, Sonic and Me were not a couple. He was in a relationship with Sally Acorn. I was just a love-sick fangirl. I chased Sonic around everywhere, proclaiming our love and saying I was his future wife. Sonic on the other hand, was embarrassed by me. He spent a lot of time with Sally, even though their relationship was rocky. Like I said, when Sonic left the Freedom Fighters, and started showing his true feelings for me, I grew more mature. I chased him for so long, so many years of chasing him. But look, we are married... Well, I don't know if that holds up right now."

Clare looked down at the ground.

"I guess you're right." She said in defeat. "I will continue, but I'm not sure if I will succeed."

Amy pulled her close. She rustled up Clare's quills and let her go.

They continued walking for a few more minutes before Clare saw something. The tree ended. They were at the border of a massive clearing. What was in the middle of the clearing almost made Clare fall over. In the middle of this field, a purple and yellow biplane. It was a marvelous machine, a work of art, one might say. Its panels gleamed in the sun. Clare stopped and stared at it with amazement. Amy giggled and walked out of the treeline, towards the other object in the clearing. A few hundred feet away from the biplane was a massive, grass covered hill. At the top of the hill was a metal hatch and a flagpole. The flag of the old Acorn Kingdom flew at the top of the pole. At the base of the hill, a small steel door was exposed. A keypad was located to the side of the door.

Amy and Clare slowly walked through the clearing, towards the grass "bunker".

"Hasn't changed a bit, has it?" Asked a voice from behind them

Amy and Clare spun around to see Tails, Sparky, and Lilly walking up to them. Clare was overjoyed to see Sparky safe, but somewhat hated him for his actions lately. She saw Lilly walking next to Sparky with her hood over her head. King Prower looked surprisingly good for a king who had spent a night in the woods. Maybe he had had the same training as her mom,

"It sure has." Amy said, looking at the bunker

Tails walked up to the biplane and patted it.

"The Tornado is still intact, thankfully." He said

Sparky, Clare, and Lilly were all confused by what the two adults were talking about. They were acting like a family who had just moved back into their own home. They seemed to have restful eyes when they gazed at the bunker and the biplane. They walked around slowly and carefully, as if the ancient plane and bunker may break. Sparky was confused enough already and decided to take the initiative.

"King Prower, what is going on here? This can't be the spot on the map that you pointed to. This is clearly someone else base. We need to get moving if we want to stop Sonic." Sparky said

Tails looked over at him. He walked over to the door of the bunker and stood there.

"Sparky, this is where we will be fighting Sonic from. He will never think to look here." Tails said, pressing in the keycode to the keypad.

The door slid open, letting a cloud of dust fly out of dark entrance. Everyone except Amy was amazed by this mysterious bunker. Amy walked over to the entrance and stood next to Tails. The three teenagers cautiously walked over to the door.

"Welcome to the Freedom Fighter HQ. Sparky, do you have a flashlight?" Tails said

Sparky pulled out his flashlight and tossed it at Tails. He caught it and turned it on. Tails walked inside the dark bunker.

"I'll turn the generators on, then you guys can come inside." Tails said, his voice echoing in the empty bunker

Everyone stood in silence for a few minutes, waiting. Eventually, the lights to the bunker turned on. They flickered to life and lit up the rooms of the bunker. Amy casually walked inside and disappeared. Clare, Lilly, and Sparky peered their heads inside, looking in every direction. The door and led to a hallway that resembled a cave more than a bunker. Sparky swallowed hard and took the first step inside. The air was stale and cold. It appeared nobody had been in here for a long time. Cobwebs were everywhere on the corners and walls. It was quiet as well. Sparky walked down the cave like hallway, Clare and Lilly followed him. They were all nervous. This place gave off a strange feeling of deep purpose, like when entering an empty church. Clare swore she heard echoes of teenagers laughing, crying, yelling, and talking. Two of the voices sounded like her mother and father. Sparky felt the same thing. He swore he heard Rob's voice echo in the bunker. Sparky noticed a steel door on one side of the rock walls.

"Come on." he said

They walked over to the door and it slid open like a well oiled machine. Inside, the air was no different, but the sight was amazing. Inside the polished white room were all kinds of computers and monitors. There were chairs along a crescent shaped table. A ladder in the middle of the room led up to a hatch on the ceiling. The computers and monitors occasional beeped or let out a buzz. They were all working to full capacity. They displayed maps, statistics, motion sensors, and the main monitor displayed a female lynx in a purple dress. She had green eyes, braided black hair, and power cords floating behind her. She had a calm smile as she looked at the three intruders.

"Hello." she said in a synthesized female voice

"H-hello." Clare said cautiously

"I am NICHOLE, official computer program of the Freedom Fighters. Please let me run a quick bioscan to look at your identities." she said in the same tone

Suddenly, a blue laser flashed over all of their bodies.

"Clare the Hedgehog, daughter of Sonic the hedgehog and Amy rose. Sparky the Hedgehog, son of... unknown and... unknown. Lilly the Hedgehog, daughter of Sky the Hedgehog and David the Hedgehog. Welcome to the Freedom Fighter HQ, awaiting your commands Clare." NICHOLE said

Everybody was amazed by what the computer was saying. It knew all of the, but seemed to be taking orders from Clare. They all stood, speechless.

"J-just, do whatever... you usually d-do." Clare said nervously

They all slowly stepped out of the room and closed the door. They were frightened by that room.

"Well." Sparky said, clapping his hands together. "Lets go see the rest of this crypt." He joked

Clare and Lilly nodded and walked down the hallway towards the entrance to a staircase. They cautiously walked down the spiral-staircase, towards the next big room. They found Amy and Tails standing in the new room. It was more of a large cave chamber than a room. The rock walls had paintings hanging from them. One wall had three doors spaced across it. The far corner of the room held a kitchen. In the middle of the room was a maroon couch, maroon chair, and a small tube-TV. Tails was kneeling by the TV, tinkering with it. Amy was walking slowly around the walls, admiring the pictures. Sparky was the first to question this place.

"Sir, this doesn't look like a great place to be right now. I would think Sonic would come here if he were looking for the Freedom Fighters." Sparky said, getting irritated

Tails looked up from the TV and smiled.

"Oh it is. And if Sonic does find it, we will be ready. He doesn't know the keycode to the entrance. Plus, we have my plane outside, we can go anywhere now and search for him from a bird's eye view." Tails explained

Clare ignored all of this, she had only stopped to put the hood and cape on the couch. She was too busy examining the pictures on the walls. They were older, taken with some broken camera. The pictures made her wonder even more about her parents' hidden past. One of the photos was a picture of her dad, Sonic. He was standing next to a chili dog stand, jumping with excitement. He was young, no older that 13. He was wearing the shoes that she had seen at Rob's house. The next picture showed Sonic and a female Squirrel sitting on a stump. He was giving her a flower. They were both a little bit older. The next picture showed him with running away from a pink female hedgehog. The girl looked like her mom, Amy. She was much younger, and smaller. She was chasing him with her piko piko hammer. The next picture was one of a group of people. All the people in the photo were older, around her age. Sonic and the female squirrel were holding hands in front of the group. Next to Sonic was Amy and a small two tailed fox stood there. Next to the squirrel was a coyote in a blue battle jacket, a walrus, and a half robotic rabbit. They were all smiling and holding their thumbs up.

Clare looked at the picture in awe. So those were the Freedom Fighters. Clare suddenly heard footsteps behind her. She turned her head around and saw Amy walking up to her. They both smiled and looked at the picture. Amy sighed.

"I remember that day. We were having a picnic. King Elias took that picture." She said quietly

Clare was amazed by all of this. This whole bunker was full of memories that her mom, dad, and King Prower shared. Amy tapped on Clare's shoulder.

"Come over here." She said

Clare followed Amy to one of the doors. The wooden door had a piece of paper taped to it. It read: "Only for the way past cool people." Amy slowly opened the door

The door creaked open and a new smell washed over them. The smell of old pizza and other revolting stenches. Clare covered her nose and gagged.

"Smells like you opened Sonic's room!" Tails called out across the room

Amy giggled and walked inside. The small room was nothing special. The walls were blue and had posters of shoes, jets, robots, girls, and athletes on them. It had a wooden single-person bed on the right wall. It was folded nicely and clean. On the other wall was a desk with an assortment of pictures, toys, maps, and a radio. A pizza box with half a pizza lay on the blue carpet floor. Clare walked in and looked around.

"This was your dad's room when he was younger." Amy said

Clare looked around and then walked over to the desk. Something on the desk caught her attention. It was a small photo. The crumpled up and slightly torn photo seemed well used. It was a photo of Sonic and Amy. Amy was on her knees with her hands propping her up on the ground. She was crying. In front of her, Sonic was kneeling on one knee. He had a rose in his hand and was smirking. Behind them, the spring forest was bright and colorful. It was a very romantic picture. Clare gently picked it up to get a closer look. Amy walked over and looked over Clare's shoulder.

"That was the day that I knew he liked me." Amy said

Clare slowly handed Amy the photo.

"You take it, you need this." she said quietly

Amy shook her head and pushed the photo back to Clare.

"No, you need it. You need to remember that he was once a true hero and a kind person. Keep it." Amy said dutifully

Clare nodded and put the photo in her breast pocket. She then followed Amy out of the room. Clare closed the door behind her and looked at everyone else. Lilly, Sparky, and Tails were watching the newly fixed TV. They seemed to just be resting, as if nothing was wrong. That confused her. Lilly was sitting on the floor, Tails was sitting in the single chair, and Amy was walking into another door. But the person Clare looked at the most was Sparky. He was reclined on the entire couch, talking to Lilly. Clare decided now was the best time to work herself between those two. She walked over and stood in front of Sparky. He looked up at her and grinned.

"Hey there Clare. Wanna sit down?" He asked cheerfully

"Sure," She replied

Sparky got up and took his feet off the couch. Clare sat next to him. Sparky yawned and put his arm around Clare's shoulders. Lilly was watching them the whole time. She grinned and giggled. Sparky looked down at her.

"What?" Sparky asked in a joking tone

Lilly giggled again.

"Oh nothing, just you two love birds." she said, giggling

Clare felt her cheeks heat up with embarrassment. She looked over at Sparky, who was red as well.

"No!" Clare cried

Sparky, Lilly, and even Tails looked at her with shocked faces. Sparky's mouth dropped in amazement. Clare suddenly felt even more embarrassed.

"But I thought you liked him?" asked Lilly in disbelief

Clare shot a menacing look at her.

"Who told you that?" she said in a harsh voice

"Sparky." Lilly replied

They both looked at Sparky with questioning looks. Sparky chuckled nervously and got up. He clapped his hands together and turned to Tails, his face burning red with embarrassment.

"So... I'm going to find that video recorder you were talking about sir, and, get started on that project." Sparky said, nervously and awkwardly walking away

He proceeded to quickly get out of that room as fast as possible. It was now just Clare, Lilly, and Tails. Lilly and Clare were staring at each other with different expressions. Clare's was one of hate and rebuke. Lilly's was one of confusion and innocence. Tension hung over the room like an umbrella. Tails could sense the tension as well. He quietly stood up and left the room. Lilly was completely confused. Sparky had said that they both really liked each other and he hoped they could become something more. But as soon as she met Clare, Clare had acted aloof and separated from them. Lilly couldn't figure out why though. Clare hated Lilly with a passion. That girl had done nothing but separate her from Sparky. Lilly was flirting with him and always talking, shoving her away from him. Clare needed to find a way to impress Sparky and show she was the better girl. But that was the problem, she was not as useful to the group as Lilly was. Clare had always been a calm, awkward girl who just minded her business. She never tried learning how to shoot a bow or use swords, or even use a power like her parents.

Suddenly, Amy poked her head out of one of the rooms. She had an exhilarated smile on her face.

"Clare, can you come here for a second?" she asked pleasantly

Clare stood up and walked over to her mom. Amy retreated back into the room, Clare followed. Clare walked into the room. It was completely dark except for a single light hanging from the ceiling. Amy was standing in the middle of the room, holding a large, thin, wooden rectangular box. Clare stepped inside.

"Close the door please." Amy said

Clare closed the door and stood just indie the circle of light on the floor. Amy grinned at her and patted the box lightly. Clare stared at the box. It was made of polished oak wood with a brass latch and hinges on it. Carved into the top cover were the words: "Property of Rosy the Rascal".

"What is that thing?" Clare asked

"This... this belonged to me when I was only 12-years-old. Back then I was nicknamed Rosy the Rascal. This was a box that held my weapons when I was a freedom Fighter." Amy said

Clare raised an eyebrow in interest. She had always thought that her only weapon was the piko piko hammer. Clare guessed she was wrong. Amy slowly opened the box. The inside of the box was covered in a pink, silk covered cushions. The cushions had imprints of two rings. Those must have been her bracelets that she used to summon her hammer. But in the middle of the box, was something different. There was a crossbow. It was a plain wooden crossbow with metal parts. It was small, child sized almost. Three small metal bolts were placed next to it. Clare was awestruck by the weapon. She looked up at Amy in disbelief.

"You were an archer?!" she cried

Amy giggled.

"Yes, I used to not only use a hammer, but also this crossbow. Rob taught me how to use it when I was very young. I kept this box with me until I needed to use these weapons. After I turned 17, I stopped using the crossbow because I was good with my hammer. I preserved it in this box. I guess I just forgot about it. But now, I'm giving it to you." Amy said, handing the box to Clare. "I want you to become a great archer, like me, and like Rob. It runs in the family Clare, you come from a long line of archers. Now it is your turn. Also, I hear a certain male hedgehog likes girls who have crossbows." Amy said

Clare held the box with solemn pride. At that moment, she promised to herself that she would learn how to use this crossbow. She would get good and show Sparky that she was not just a pretty teenage girl. She could be a fighter, like her parents.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, nostalgia is dripping from this chapter. I have just brought in the Tornado, the Freedom Fighter HQ, and Amy's crossbow! It is true, for any of you who don't know. Amy has always had a crossbow. And she is an expert archer with it. I never read the comics, but judging from the wiki post about it. She is very very good with it. Anyway, Clare is now filling not only Sonic's shoes by wearing the hood and cape, but also Amy's by using her crossbow. Anyway, as always please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, pa pa!**

**BTW, this chapter took FOREVER to write. So leave a review please.**


	15. Radio

"**Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord."**

**-Ephesians 6:4**

Sonic ran through the dark countryside. He ran through the forests, leaving burn marks from his over-used feet. He had had a busy time lately. He had been throughout the kingdom, destroying refugee sights and fortified villages. He had slaughtered the troops inside, and left the villagers terrified and shocked.

"_You are doing a good thing "Ghost", you are destroying their prisons which hold the villagers. You are fulfilling your promise you made to Rob. You are destroying the oppressive rule of the Freedom Fighters." _said a strange old female voice

It was not Sally's voice that he was hearing in his head, it was a strange old woman's. Occasionally, he would see the ghosts of the Freedom Fighters wondering in the woods around him. Their peaceful, glowing white, translucent bodies comforted him. Both the voices, and the ghosts would give him advice and tell him what to do next. He obeyed them with an eager attitude.

"_Why did you ever think Amy was your wife, and Tails was your friend? They are Freedom Fighters, and like the other Freedom Fighters, they must die."_

Sonic did have a question sometimes.

"But hasn't it been twenty years? Aren't the people no longer suffering?" he thought

"_NO! They have used this opportunity of war to restart what their friends failed to do. Have you not seen how they require boys to leave their families to fight? Have you not seen them herd up the villagers and place them in these camps where they may not leave? Have you not seen the hypocritical lifestyle that Tails had. Have you not realize how depressed you were for those twenty years? This is the right thing to do. Do not question this." _said the voice in his head

"You are correct." he thought

"_Good, now, there is one last prison in this area, head south. Kill the soldiers, liberate the people."_

"As you command." He thought

Sonic sprinted as fast as his robotic legs could run. He saw them turning orange with heat, burning the ground. His brown cloak, which Tails had given him earlier, was now torn, burnt, and had the blood of soldiers all over it. His gloves were now permanently stained red. His body looked terrible. His ribs could be seen, and his stomach area was caving in. He had not felt the need to eat in days, but felt full. It was as if something was supplying him with energy. Maybe it was the voice who had supplied them both with this power. He felt like he was constantly experiencing "Chaos Control", like what Dr. Eggman had talked about. The voice had appeared ever since he killed Dr. Eggman and began fighting the remaining Freedom fighters. But the voice said exactly what Sally had said. It was the voice that he understood and followed.

Scene change

"Are you ready Sparky?" Tails asked, fixing his cape

Sparky was holding onto a small video-camera. It was turned on and aimed at Tails. Tails was standing in front of one of the cave walls of the hallway. Lilly stood next to Sparky, holding onto a small metal box. It was a box that was connected to Sparky's video-camera by a red chord. The box was a transmitter that went out to every singe TV, computer and radio in the kingdom. With one switch, it would transmit. Sparky gave a thumbs up.

"We're live in three... two... one... action." Sparky announced

At that moment, Lilly flipped the switch and a red light appeared next to the switch.

"Good evening Mobians of the Acorn kingdom." Tails said in his best stoic king's voice. "Tonight, I come to say to you, that you are not forgotten. I have not abandoned you, or forsaken you. Some may think that I am dead. But in reality, I am far from it. I am leading a small group of fighters against Sonic. It is with a heavy heart that I take this responsibility to bring our hero to justice. Many of us remember him when he had legs, and was a hero. We remember when he was the "Ghost", and how he protected us. Those times are long gone. But now, we must stand strong. The Acorn Kingdom has gone through many hardships in the past few days. These days have brought us to near extinction. But we will recover. Do not fear, for we may grow strong again. Do what you can. Keep away from Sonic, do not provoke him. To our armed forces I say this. Do not surrender, do not give up fighting. You still have leadership, and you still have me. Do not attack Sonic, for he believes you are evil. Stay away from him. We may have been miraculously saved from the Robots, but now, we have this new threat. Don't give up hope soldiers. Remember what your fathers fought against in the "Dark times". We can do this. Stay strong people, and don't give up hope. This times are not the same, but peace can still be brought. Good night, and may the Master Emerald protect us, and the Kingdom."

Sparky turned off the camera and lowered it. He gave a thumbs up to Tails.

"Nice work sir. What's next?" he asked

Tails wiped his forehead and sighed. He walked up to Sparky and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Now, we figure out what is causing Sonic to go crazy. If we find out what is doing this, we can reverse it." Tails said

Lilly put down the box and walked over to them. She was concerned.

"Do you guys know where Clare and her mom are?" she asked in a worried tone

Sparky looked over at Lilly.

"Clare said she was going out with her mom to get food from a nearby village. And has to Clare practice something." He said

Scene change

Clare and Amy stood at the top of a grassy hill that overlooked a small village. But the village was different. The village had a chain-link fence around it with guard towers spaced out along the fence. Massive flood-lights kept the area around it brightly lit. A single osprey was parked just outside. Food and supplies were being transported into the village. Soldiers and villagers worked tirelessly to bring in the food. Crates of food, medicine, clothes, ammunition, and other goods dotted the ground. The village inside was in surprisingly good shape. The buildings were intact, the streets were clean, and people seemed to be enjoying themselves. It appeared that this village was well defended during the invasion, and Sonic had yet to lay waste to the soldiers inside. Amy put her hand on Clare's shoulder.

"We'll grab some supplies, then you can practice with my crossbow. Sound good?" Asked Amy

Clare looked down at the wooden case that held the crossbow. She patted it lightly and smiled. She looked up at her mom.

"Sounds good." she replied

Amy grinned and they both walked down together towards the village. As they approached, the flood-lights aimed at them. They saw black figures running behind the fence. They then saw red lasers being pointed at them from the guard towers. They heard the faint clicking of rifles. Suddenly, a voice came over the loudspeaker.

"By order of the Acorn Kingdom, stop where you are!" yelled the voice over the loudspeaker

Amy and Clare stopped.

"Let me handle this." Amy whispered

Clare nodded. Amy took a step forward.

"I am Amy Rose, wife of Sonic the Hedgehog. I am here with my daughter, Clare. We come just to get supplies for me and my friends. Please let us in." she announced

A long silence followed. Amy took a step back and stood next to Clare. The officers inside were clearly debating whether to let her in or not. After a silence that seemed like a lifetime, the screech of the loudspeaker turning on filled the air.

"You have clearance. Go to gate on the east wall. If you attempt any suspicious behavior, we will shoot on site." said the announcer

Amy nodded thankfully and took Clare's hand. They walked over to the east wall of the fence. A checkpoint was there. There was a guard station and a gate with a rising and lowering gate. Two soldiers were standing watch at the checkpoint. They both were in the black uniform and tactical gear. One of them was an officer and didn't have a helmet. He was an elderly green hedgehog with thick gray eyebrows and a large gray mustache. His blue eyes were hard and experienced. The other one was a badger. He was young and nervous. He held onto his rifle with a tight grip. He shook in his tactical gear. Amy and Clare walked up to the two. She nodded to the older guard and he smiled. He pressed a button in the guard station and the yellow gate slowly rose up. As they were just about to walk in, the guard walked out of the station.

"Is it true you're married to Sonic, Amy Rose?" asked the older guard

Amy stopped and turned around. She did not smile, it was a sad thing to remember that he once was a kind and loving person.

"Yes, indeed I am." She said slowly

The guard took off his baseball cap and put it over his chest.

"I was a young recruit for the Royal Army when he was fighting Dr. Eggman. Even an old fart like me remembers him. I also remember you when you were younger, how you would always chase him. What's happened over those last twenty years?" He said, recalling memories

Amy looked down a bit. She smirked a bit when she thought about their past. That was all a long time ago. Now, times have changed, and Sonic is evil. It is up to her and Tails to bring him back. He was their friend, it was their responsibility to bring him back. Amy looked back up at him and smiled.

"I do remember those times. Maybe one day, it will go back to that." she said quietly

Amy took Clare's hand and started walking inside. She waved to the old guard as he put on his baseball cap.

"See ya soon!" She called out

He smiled and waved back. The gate closed behind them. As they walked into the town, Clare began to think.

"Why have you guys never told me about your pasts?" she asked

Amy thought about that while they walked. It was a touchy subject in their household. They had told her that they, at one point were freedom Fighters, and that Sonic lost his legs during an explosion. But they had never told her the whole story. Part of that was Clare often got bored when they tried to tell her. Another was that Sonic was embarrassed by it. He still felt bad for not being a good person to Amy for all those years. And he still hated himself for killing his friends. It was a hard thing for him to talk about because he did not want to accept the fact that he had killed them. He always wanted to believe it was the right thing to do, but he knew it wasn't.

"Because... your father felt, uncomfortable... talking about our past. He was embarrassed by it and he regrets his past actions." Amy explained

Clare let out a faint humph.

"Well he should have accepted what he did and realized that the past is in the past. He should have let it go." Clare said

They continued to walk down the street, past all the houses and military tents. The village was doing surprisingly well. There was not much trash, the streets were clean, the people were clean and somewhat cheerful. It was as if nothing wrong was going on, except the military was different. The soldiers were tired and sad. They walked around with hunched shoulders and depressed expressions. Some of them were even wounded. Amy walked up to the largest of the military tents. It had a single guard outside. He was a young chipmunk male who smirked a bit when he saw Clare. He raised his eyebrows and nodded his head at her. She grew angry and snickered. They walked inside the tent. The tent was lit up by the blue glow of computer screens. Operators sat by their monitors and talked into their headsets. A large table was in the middle with a dozen maps scattered on it. Half empty foam coffee cups held the maps in place. Leaning over the maps was an officer. The older squirrel was in the black uniform and gear that everyone else was in. But he wore a red beret with a gold star in the crest. He looked up from his maps and stared at Amy and Clare. He had an angered face mixed with impatience.

"If you want your rations, get in line like everyone else." He said gruffly, looking back down at his maps

Amy was not stopped by this. She walked up and stood in front of him. She put her hands on her hips and looked down at the general. Clare stood behind Amy, holding onto the case with the crossbow. She was ready to see what her mom would do to this poor soul.

"Excuse me?" she asked pleasantly with a fake smile

The general looked up. He was even more irritated now.

"What?!" He shouted

"I was just hoping that me and my daughter here could grab some supplies of yours. We need it for our home back in the woods. It's important." she said kindly

"Look lady, I don't know who you think you are, but this is a military CP right here. You are not authorized to be in here. Now get out." he said

Clare cringed. She knew what was about to happen. Amy leaned forward and put her hands on the table. She stared directly at him with a stone cold stare.

"List up you sorry excuse for a rodent. Under the conditions of the Council of Acorn, you are here by stripped of your rank unless you give me what I want." Amy said clearly

"Under whose authority?" he replied, challenging her

Amy pulled out something from her apron pocket. It was a gold badge. It was a gold shield with an acorn in the middle with the letters FF on it. It was the badge she had been given while she was a Freedom Fighter when Elias was a dictator.

"I am a Freedom Fighter. So I have the consent of King Prower and the Council of Acorn. And we all know quite well from this evening's broadcast that he is, in fact, still alive, and therefore, I still have my power. So you are going to get you sorry ass up, and give me some food, arrows of every type, and other tactical gear. Understood?"

The general was suddenly shocked by the news. He now realized that this was Amy Rose he was talking to. He had to show respect. He saluted sharply.

"Understood ma'am, this way." he said quickly

He quickly walked around the table and out the tent. Amy and Clare smiled at each other and they followed the general.

"Nice work mom." Clare said

Amy smiled and rustled Clare's quills. The three walked along, towards a pile of gray boxes. The general held out his hand, pointing to the boxes.

"Take whatever you ne-" He suddenly fell to the ground, his head completely reversed. He neck had been snapped. Clare screamed in horror and Amy pulled out her hammer. She looked around, there was nothing there. They had felt a hot gust of wind go past them when his neck was snapped. She knew exactly who it was. It was Sonic, he was here. She had to alert the place. Without another thought, Amy started running through the streets, towards the nearest guard. She began waving her hands with one hand still holding her hammer.

"Sound the alarm! Sonic is here! Get everybody indoors now!" She screamed

The soldier took notice and pulled out his radio. He yelled into it.

"Sonic is in the camp, I repeat, Sonic is in the camp!" He yelled

Seconds later, a loud siren began going off. All the lights turned red and soldiers could be heard yelling and shouting. Villagers were running to their houses and screaming in horror. Amy saw a blue and brown flash go past one of the guards. His throat started bleeding. He grabbed it and fell over quietly. Another soldier fell as well. Amy stood motionless, she was in awe at the chaos that Sonic was causing. Suddenly, someone screamed.

"My house is on fire!"

Everybody turned around and saw that not only was the house on fire, but the military tent next to it was already ablaze and well under way of being lit. It seemed Sonic had lit the military tent, also causing the house to catch as well. Amy then began to notice that almost every military tent was either beginning to catch fire, or was on fire. The houses next to them with their thatched roofs caught fire easily. Everybody was panicking. It was both terrifying, and exhilarating. She then felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around, just in time to see a fist hit her in the face. She flew back and skidded on the ground. She felt blood coming from her nose. She then looked up and saw who had struck her. It was Sonic. He stood there, grinning. One hand was holding onto Tails' crown. He had kept it. Another was in a blood soaked fist. It was just like her vision she had had a few nights ago in her bed. Amy screamed in fear. She began to cry. Her Sonic had just hit her. He would never do that, never had he ever done that. Amy stumbled, trying to get up. She stood up and pulled out her hammer, still crying. Sonic laughed his hysterical and uncontrolled laugh.

"Ha ha ha... Hey there Amy. It's been awhile. Ha ha ha... You think you're so clever, tricking me into loving you and all. Ha ha ha... But it turns out, you're just another Freedom Fighter. You never liked me. It's because of you I'm like this! Ha ha ha... It's because I tried to save you that I'm like this! You slut! Ha ha ha..." Sonic screamed, running towards her

Amy's vision was blurred with tears. She was facing him for the first time. She would have to fight him. Before Sonic could reach her, she pulled out her hammer. She swung just at the right time. Her hammer made contact with him and he flew across the street, and hit the wall of a building. He fell down, but quickly got up. He wiped away some spit from his mouth and laughed.

"Ha ha ha... Now this is a fight!" he screamed

Sonic ran at her again.

"Sonic, don't make me do this to you!" Amy begged

As Sonic approached, Amy swung again. She hit him again and he flew back. Her hands trembled after this. She couldn't hit him again without falling to the ground and crying. It was too emotional for her. She had spent all her life following this caring, loving, recklessly stupid, and fun hedgehog called Sonic. Now, she was fighting a sinister, deranged, killing, lunatic called Sonic. She had married this hedgehog, and loved him with all her heart, and her had loved her as well. They had had a daughter whom they both loved. It was impossible for her to fight him, and win. He wanted to hurt her, she didn't want to hurt him. Sonic got up and ran at her again, yelling in anger. This time however, Amy was not so fast. She was still crying and couldn't see through her blurred vision. Sonic made contact and tackled her. They fell over with Sonic on top of her. He tried to punch her, but she dodged the punches. Although she was successful with blocking his first few attacks, Sonic would not tire, and Amy did. A few of his punches landed their hits and Amy felt the pain hit her. After a few hits, Sonic leaned back.

"Ha ha ah... Good bye my rose." He snarled

Sonic grabbed both ends of her head and prepared to twist.

"Hey dad! Get off of her!" screamed a female voice that was suppressing fear

Sonic let go and turned his head around. It was Clare. She was aiming Amy's crossbow at Sonic. She was shaking, crying, and her expression was one of true fear. Sonic smiled and stood up. He turned around and faced Clare.

"Ha ha ha... If it isn't daddy's little girl. Nice to see you again Clare, too bad it will be the last. Ha ha ha..." Sonic laughed

But this time was enough for Amy to get her hammer, and strike another blow to Sonic. He flew to their left side and hit a piles of crates. Amy stood up and wiped the blood from her nose. Clare ran over to Amy and they hugged each other.

"Thank goodness you got here when you did Clare. He was just about to finish me." Amy said

"Mom, we need to get out of here." Clare said, pulling away

Amy looked over at Sonic, who was stumbling about, holding onto his head and moaning. They needed to hide and catch their breath.

"Come on, lets find a place to hide." Amy said, beginning to run

They both ran as far away from Sonic as they could within the Village. They found a wine cellar next to one of the houses. Amy opened the cellar doors and Clare rushed inside. Amy followed and closed the doors behind her. It was completely black inside the cellar. No lights or windows gave light to it. They couldn't even see their own hands in front of them.

"Mom, I can't see, and I doubt there's a light switch here." Clare said quietly

Amy reached into her apron and pulled out a small tube. She cracked it and it began to glow green. She held out the chemical light in front of them. Its green light barely lit up their faces. Clare was amazed by this.

"What else do you carry in that pocket apron?" Clare asked

Amy smiled.

"Your uncle, Manic, taught me all about how to fit things in pockets. You'd be surprised by how many things are in this apron." Amy said quietly

Clare giggled. Uncle Manic was always fun. He always had given her gifts when he visited. She hoped he was doing alright. She wished everyone in her family was alright. She hoped Aunt Sonia was okay, she hoped Grandma Bernadette and grandpa Jules were okay, she hoped Cousin Rob was okay, and she hoped they would be okay.

"Now, lets contact Tails." Amy said

"You have a radio as well?" Clare asked in amazement

Amy giggled and nodded. She reached inside her apron and pulled out a radio. Thank you Manic for teaching your sister-in-law about skills with pockets. She really wished she had his fanny-pack that could hold a drum-set and anything else they needed. Amy turned on the radio. Static followed as she turned to the right frequency. Once she was on the right one, she spoke into it.

"Tails, this is Amy, do you copy?" she asked

Static followed for a long time. She asked again.

"Tails, this is Amy, do you copy?" she asked

A few moments later, the static ended.

"Hello?" it was a younger male voice

"Sparky? Oh thank the emerald. Listen, get King Prower on the radio now." Amy said

"Got it ma'am. Is Clare okay?" He asked, sounding worried

Amy giggled, looking over at Clare, who was turning red.

"Yes, she's fine. Now get King Prower for me." Amy said again

"Got it." he replied

A few seconds later, an older male voice came on."

"Amy, is that you? What's going on? Why are you calling? He asked

"I don't have time to tell you. We are at a village five kilometers west of the Freedom Fighter HQ. Get over here quickly. Sonic is laying waste to the soldiers and setting their tents, and the houses on fire." Amy pleaded

"We're an our way." he replied

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, this chapter is done, and a lot has happened. Sonic and Amy fought, I didn't like it any more than you did. The next few chapters will be pretty big. Now, if any of you are star wars fans, I recommend you check out my new story I am making. It is about a clone trooper named Miles, I wonder who he is named after. Anyway, check it out please, it is not getting a lot of views or reviews. Also, there was a Frozen reference in this chapter, tell me if you found it. Anyway, as always please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, pa pa!**

**P.S. I just realized how dark this story has become. Thankfully it will have a sweet ending.**

**OH I ALMOST FORGOT! GummyGal, one of my followers has made a new cover image for this story. Check it out. Also, if you haven't seen the one for "I remember" check that one out as well. She is an amazing artist and I recommend you check out her stories. **


	16. Tornado

"**Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in Him."**

**-Psalm 32:10**

Tails threw down his radio and quickly turned to Sparky, and Lilly, who were leaning against the back of the couch in the lounge room. They looked at him with expecting faces.

"What is it King Prower?" Sparky asked

Tails looked at him with a dutiful expression. He was beginning to sweat from the knowledge of this situation.

"Amy and Clare are with Sonic. We need to get over there and pick them up." Tails said

Sparky and Lilly both looked at each other, then at Tails, with confused faces.

"How are we going to get there in time?" she asked

Tails smirked.

"I'm a pilot. Lets go." he said, taking off his cape

The cape fell on the ground and Sparky and Lilly followed him as he race-walked towards the staircase. Sparky grabbed his bow, and Lilly grabbed her crossbow. Sparky checked his quiver and assessed how many arrows he had. Lilly did the same. They followed the King up to where he was going. There was a hat rack next to the stairs. On the rack was an old leather pilot's helmet with old goggles strapped to it. Tails grabbed the helmet and put it on. Sparky and Clare were confused. Did the King really know how to fly? What else did this fox know? They followed him up and out of the Freedom Fighter HQ.

They approached the Tornado. The full moon cast a sparkle on the biplane. Its white glow lit up the panels on the plane. The yellow streaks across it gave it an artistic look. Every panel was stream-lined and beautifully crafted. Tails let a tear fall as he walked up, strapping his helmet on. He pulled down his goggles and opened up the contained ladder on the fuselage. He loved flying, and he loved the Tornado. This machine had flown him so many different places and done so much for him. He loved it as if it were his child. He climbed into the pilot's seat and strapped in. Sparky and Lilly followed and sat down in the seats behind him. He remembered about the tandem style seats that Sally had requested to be put on the Tornado. Luckily, there were enough for all of them. They would need it. Sparky and Lilly strapped in. Tails looked back and gave them a thumbs up. They both gave a thumbs up in return. Tails nodded and looked down at the controls. He turned on a red button and the panel lit up, casting a blue glow over him. All the instruments still worked. Everything was green and ready to go. Tails pressed the ignition button and the propellers slowly began to turn fast and faster. The roaring sound of the engine warmed his heart. The plane began to shake and rattle. The smell of oil and jet fuel filled the air. Soon, the propellers were spinning at full speed. All he needed to do was pull off the breaks, and the Tornado would take off. Tails looked back at the two passengers, who were absolutely terrified.

"You ready?!" He screamed over the engine

They both shook their heads quickly. Tails laughed and looked back down at the controls. He pulled the breaks off and the Tornado jolted forward. The force shot them all back in their seats. The plane sped down the grass field, gaining speed. Soon, it rose off the ground. Tails pulled back on the stick and the plane flew strait up.

"YEAH! I LOVE IT!" Tails screamed

"YOU LOVE THIS!?" Lilly asked

"ARE YOU KIDDING THIS IS AWESOME!" screamed Sparky

They flew up higher and higher. The plane shot into the night sky, making a deep throaty noise that echoed in the air. They flew up and finally, Tails leveled the plane. He was flying as fast as he could. It was just like old times. He was flying the Tornado, going to save the day. He loved it.

"NICHOLE, put in a coarse for Amy's radio signal." Tails said to the control panel

"Copy that Tails." Said NICHOLE's monotone voice

A second later, a green line appeared on the GPS map. Tails turned the stick right and they banked right. Lilly screamed in terror, and Sparky threw his arms into the air, yelling in joy. They flew in the direction of Amy's radio location. They soon leveled out, and Tails put on the after-burners. The Tornado shot even fast through the air, heading for the village. Tails looked around at the beauty of the night sky. A million stars dotted the sky. The full moon gave a bright light that showed the world below them. The ground below was full of trees, fields, mountains, and lakes. Sparky and Lilly were amazed by the view. They had not seen such a wonderful countryside when they were in the ospreys. This was a new type of beautiful they had never seen before. It almost made them forget about Sonic terrorizing the kingdom, or the failed robot invasion. It was soothing, they could see why Tails liked this.

"King Prower, were you really a pilot?" asked Lilly

"Yes I was, the best in Mobius. But when I became king, I gave it up. I had more important duties than this." Tails answered

"Why wouldn't you continue this?" asked Sparky

"We all have to grow up some day Sparky." Tails said "But me, Amy, and even Sonic, truly do love this. This reminds us of our past and what we used to do."

"What did you do?" asked Lilly

"We were Freedom Fighters, fighting Dr. Eggman, who made robots. He took over the kingdom, and we fought him, along with others such as Sally, Antoine, Rotor, and Bunnie. We were only teenagers then. If only you understood how wonderful those days were. Not a day goes by where we don't think about those simple times of fight Eggman, party, and do it again. It almost makes you wish those times could last forever."

The two ended their questions. They thought about all of what he said. It was a strange thing to them to think that someone would want to fight again, but they didn't know about all that. Their thoughts were interrupted when suddenly, dark pillar of smoke covered the light of the moon. They all looked in the direction of the black pillar and saw a bright red glow. It was a burning village with flames rising hundreds of feet into the air. The smoke made it hard for them to breath. Sparky and Lilly pulled their scarves and hoods over their mouths to block the smoke. Tails had to tolerate the smoke, luckily, he had his goggles on.

"That looks like out place." Tails said

"Let me check." Sparky said

He pulled out a pair of binoculars from his belt and aimed at the village. He was horrified at what he saw. He saw dead soldiers and screaming villagers everywhere. The village was completely ablaze and no building was intact. The villagers were running out of the gates, and breaking down the fences, trying to get out. Sparky then saw a blue hedgehog in a brown cape walk down one of the streets. He was holding onto Tails' crown and looking around. He was laughing and killing off the last soldiers. Sparky lowered the binoculars and put them away.

"Yep, he's down there. But I don't know where Clare and Mrs. Rose are." he reported

"That's good enough for us. Are the villagers leaving?" Tails asked

"Yeah, their flooding out of the place. Why?" Sparky said

Tails banked the plane right and they dove down to the village. Sparky and Lilly held onto the handles of their seats with death grips. They were terrified of what the veteran pilot was about to do. Tails dove the plane down faster and faster. The wind passed by them with frightening speed. Lilly's hair began flying about, the pony-tail had finally given up. Tails appeared to be heading strait for Sonic.

"What are you doing?!" Sparky yelled

"This plane has sleeping-darts on it. What do ya think I'm doing?!" Tails answered

They dove strait for Sonic. Sonic looked up in the direction of the roaring sound. He knew that sound, it was the sound of a biplane. Tails was heading strait for him. He looked up and spotted the black form approaching him.

"Cover your eyes!" Tails yelled

They both closed their eyes. Tails aimed at Sonic and pulled the trigger. The dual machine-guns on the nose of the plane lit up. It was a blinding show for Tails. His vision was going bad already, but this didn't help. The duel machine-guns shot small darts with unnatural speed. The darts made faint whistling sounds as they flew through the air. They made a perfect line through the ground, heading strait for Sonic.

"Ha ha ha... It's about time old friend." Sonic hissed

The line of darts slowly approached him. He ran away from the darts, making sure none of them hit him. But suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder-blade. Sonic quick-stepped to the side and looked at what had hit him. The small dart was no thicker than a toothpick, and no longer than a sparrow. It was painted black with a blue tip on it. Sonic felt the sleeping chemicals flow through his body. It felt like a calmness was settling over him. But it was soon replaced by a feeling like Chaos Control. It was like the feeling that was keeping him energized, but stronger.

" _No, I will not allow you to sleep. You must continue fighting the evil oppressors. Go!"_ screamed the voice inside of his mind

"Of course." Sonic replied

Sonic pulled out the dart and threw it on the ground. He looked up and saw the Tornado making another pass.

"It had no effect sir!" Sparky yelled

"What!?" Tails cried in confusion

Those darts were loaded with enough sleeping agents to knock out a whale. How could he just pull it out? Tails made another pass, shooting at him again. The line of approaching darts came up to him fast. The dirt shot up from each dart's impact. Sonic jumped out of the way of the darts. They passed by him. He looked up as the plane flew by him from a low altitude. For a brief second, he saw the occupants of the plane. He saw Tails, Sparky, and that strange red girl hedgehog he had seen before. They passed by him and gained altitude again.

"_You do not have time for this. You can find Amy soon. Come to where I am. You need food and a place to rest. Even you, the "Ghost" needs a place to sleep. Come to me, and you will learn your next move." _said the female voice

"As you wish." Sonic said

He felt a strange tingling sensation. He turned around. The sensation felt stronger when he turned to the north. He knew the sensation would lead him to the location he was told to go to. Sonic sprinted off, leaving a blue streak behind him. He ran, his feet beginning to glow orange from the heat of overuse. Within seconds, Sonic had disappeared, leaving a chaotic mess in his wake.

Sparky looked around with his binoculars. There were no signs of life anywhere. He had seen Sonic sprint off, emerald knows where.

"He's gone. He left and was heading north. I think it's safe to go down there now." Sparky said

Tails nodded and slowed the Tornado down. He slowly descended down and flew barely above the ground. He then landed on the grass field just outside the village. The plane jolted when it hit the ground. The plane slowed down and came to a halt. Tails turned off the engine. The propellers slowed down and stopped. He unstrapped himself and jumped out. Sparky and Lilly followed. They both drew out their weapons and searched the area, checking every direction. There was nothing around in the dark world. But the light from the fires lit up the world and cast shadows that made them jump in their fur.

"We're good." Sparky said

Lilly and him lowered their weapons and they followed Tails as he walked towards the burning village. As they entered the village, their senses were overpowered. The smell of burning wood and other burning things that I dare not say filled their nostrils. The smoke clogged their lungs, making every breath hard. The smoke burned their eyes, and Sparky and Lilly teared up from the smoke. The heat was unbearable. It made them sweat and their feared getting burned from the massive flames. The light from all the burning houses was blinding. They had to look down to keep their eyes from hurting even more. They walked down the village streets.

"AMY! CLARE!" Tails screamed, cupping his mouth

"CLARE! WE'RE HERE!" Sparky yelled

"CLARE! MRS. ROSE!" Lilly called

A few minutes went by with no response. The village was completely silent. There was a ghostly feel to it all. The crackling of fire was the only sound in the entire village. Suddenly, a squeaking noise pierced the silence. They all turned in the direction of the sound. A few hundred feet away, the doors to a cellar were slowly opening. Sparky and Lilly aimed their weapons at it and slowly approached. But the people that came out of the cellar, filled everyone with joy.

Amy and Clare stumbled out of the cellar, coughing. Amy stepped out and stared at Tails with a weary look. Clare came out with a small box in her hands, and looked at Sparky and Lilly. Amy's face lit up with joy and relief. She ran over to Tails and grabbed his hands. She held them tight and shook them. She was crying.

"Thank you so much Tails, thank you for coming to save us. I don't know how much longer we could have breathed under there. There was so much smoke." Amy said, crying

"Don't worry Amy, we would never leave you two." Tails said, slowly letting go of her hands

Amy smiled and nodded. She coughed again and looked over at Sparky, Lilly, and Clare.

As soon as Sparky had seen Clare, he had run up to her and was now hugging her with all his strength. Clare was both shocked, and disgusted by his actions. She was holding her hands away from him, and keeping her head from touching his.

"Thank the emerald you are okay Clare. If something happened to you, I don't know what I would do." Sparky said gratefully

Clare snickered and pulled away. Sparky looked at her with a confused and disappointed face.

"I think we both know what you would have done. You have a perfectly good girl behind you." she scoffed

Sparky and Lilly were both taken aback by her comment.

"What do you mean?" Sparky asked with pure astonishment

"We all know what I mean, you two timing son of a-"

"Okay," Tails said clapping his hands together "Why don't we get in the Tornado and get back to the Freedom Fighter HQ. We all need to get some rest and cool down." he said

Amy nodded.

"Good idea, Clare needs to practice with her crossbow anyway." said Amy

Sparky looked over at Clare with amazement.

"You got a crossbow!?" he cried

Clare held onto the box tightly and stared at him with a mad expression.

"Yeah, I'm not the only girl now who has a crossbow, am I? Maybe you can think about what I could be before you go around, looking for better girls." Clare said

Sparky couldn't take it, he needed to know why Clare was acting so strange. Ever since she had met Lilly, she had been acting mean and rude to them. It was making Sparky mad. But just as he was about to open his mouth, Amy walked up to him. She could sense what he was about to do. She put a hand on his shoulder and whispered into his ear.

"Not here. Wait till we get back home before you confront her. And later, I will tell you what is really happening." Amy whispered

Sparky exhaled.

"Okay ma'am. Lets go." he said, announcing the last part

Everybody slowly left the burning village. They left the village and climbed into the Tornado. Sparky sat in the back seat this time. Amy sat in front of him. Clare sat in front of her, and Lilly sat in front of Clare. Nobody said anything. Even without talking, everyone could tell the tension between Sparky and Clare. It was a much less eventful flight back to the Freedom Fighter HQ. Tails flew the Tornado smoothly and slower than he had before. As they were flying along, Clare and Lilly had fallen asleep. Sparky took this opportunity to ask Amy a few questions.

"Hey Mrs. Rose?" he asked

Amy turned her head and looked at him.

"Yes?"

"Why is Clare acting this way? I haven't done anything to hurt her, have I?"

Amy looked down.

"You did, but I'm not the one to tell you what you did. You need to talk to Clare about that." she said

"Can I ask you something else?" he asked

"Sure."

"What was it like? What was it like back during the days when you were a teenager, and all of this hadn't happened yet?" he asked innocently

Amy let out one small giggle and closed her eyes. She remembered everything so vividly. She remembered her friends, chasing Sonic, fighting Eggman, and enjoying life in general. Now everything was not the same. Everything was so dark and serious. It was all just so depressing now. It had all started getting dark and evil when Eggman had died. She wondered what happened to it all. What had happened to them all? They needed to connect to their old selves. Sonic, Amy, and Tails did.

"Well Sparky, times were much different. Back then, people were afraid. They were afraid of Dr. Eggman. But there was always hope for them all. Me, Sonic, Tails, and our friends, the Freedom Fighters, were their hope. We all loved our lives, that is probably what made it so special. Sonic and I would run around, me chasing him, him running away. It was simpler back then." Amy begins to tear up. "I still love Sonic. I still think he is the most wonderful hedgehog I have ever met. I know that it is not him doing all these things. Sonic would never hurt me. It isn't him doing this. Back then, it was Sonic who was the charming, care free, thrilling, and happy hedgehog I fell in love with..." Amy pauses, holding back tears. "We all were such good friends, but one day, that all changed. I miss those days of running, laughing, fighting, and just having a good time. Back when we were young, we were true heroes."

Amy puts her hands over her eyes and begins crying. Suddenly, a hand rested on her shoulder. She pulled her hand away and saw who the hand belonged to. It was a black hedgehog. She looked over at Sparky and smiled weakly. He was staring at her with a compassionate smile.

"Don't worry Mrs. Rose. I will do everything I can to bring those times back. I want to see you, Sonic, and Clare happy. Do you think you can let me do that?" Sparky asked

Amy places her hand on his hand and smiles.

"Thank you Sparky. Listen, you are the perfect person for Clare, but she doesn't see that yet. Thank you for everything you have done for us all so far. You are like the son I never had. Thank you." Amy said

Sparky grins and lets go. He sits back and closes his eyes.

"Now ma'am, you should try and get some rest. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow." Sparky said

Sparky soon fell asleep. Amy looked at Sparky as he slept. She thought about him. His past was amazing. When Mari-an had told her about his past, she was shocked. He was such a humble, but adventurous hedgehog. She was sure he had gotten that from Rob. He was just a teenager. He was just sixteen, and was facing things much worse than that of what she and Sonic had faced. If there was ever a doubt in her mind that Sparky wouldn't get them through this, it was gone at that moment. She saw a legacy of proud archers in him. From the legend of the human Robin Hood, to the great archers of Mobius, to the proud Rob O' Hedge, to him, to Clare. There was a legacy in him that may just get them all out of this.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, this chapter sets up for our next set of adventures. So, I found the best song today that describes the entire "I remember" story line I have created. It is called "What have you done" It is truly all of "I remember" in a nutshell. So anyway, I am sorry about the slow updates, that stupid Star Wars story is taking up too much time and I may postpone it. I need to start the oneshots story soon. Well, that is it. As always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. **

**BTW, if any of you are interested in an exciting and slowly improving story about Amy Rose, check out a story by GummyGal called "Till this day: the incredible journey" Just saying, it is slowly getting better and I think it may be worth checking out.**

**Until next time, pa pa!**


	17. Witch

"**Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," He said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment.**

**-Matthew 9:22**

Sonic sprinted through the forests. He had been running for hours now. His feet were now glowing bright orange and sizzling. They were leaving black marks on the ground. The paint was now beginning to melt off from the constant running. Sonic felt a shot of pain every now and then from the legs. The metal was burning him. But every time he felt pain, the Chaos Control-like force relieved him. It was strange, but he enjoyed it. He had never been able to run for this long. He looked at Tails' crown, which he was still holding in his hand. It reminded him of what he was doing. He was finishing off the Freedom Fighters.

"How much longer?" he wondered "I have been running for hours."

"_Do not concern yourself with that. By evening tonight, you will be with me. And you will get proper food and rest."_ said the crazy female voice

"I understand." he replied

It was now noonday on Mobius. The sun was brightly shining and cast beams of light through the trees' leafs. The environment was beautiful as usual. Flowers were everywhere, bushes with fruits on them dotted the forest. Rocks and rusting robot parts were around as well. Forest creatures pranced about and birds flew through the air. The Mobius was such a wonderful world, full of life and prosperity. But as Sonic ran north, the environment slowly changed. Dark clouds began to roll in, covering the setting sun. The ground began to change from packed and rich dirt, to marshy swampland. The trees began to change from healthy oaks, to dying or dead trees with roots that were above the ground. No animals could be seen at all. The world was silent and dead. A single cricket could be heard, but nothing else. As he ran, Sonic saw something interesting. He saw a dead SWAT-bot lying on the ground. It was rusted and old. It was the same type of SWAT-bot he had fought when Dr. Eggman had first invaded the Kingdom. He stopped fighting those many years ago. Dr. Eggman had stopped using them after he was supposedly killed the first time in Robotropolis.

"Strange." he said to himself as he ran

Soon, the environment was completely different. The entire world was now a swamp. It was incredibly humid and hot. Fog had rolled in and was blocking out the dim moon. Mosquitoes and other bugs flew around in the humid air. As he ran, Sonic noticed a few lights up ahead. He ran towards the lights, wondering what they were doing out here. When he reached the source of the light, he was amazed. He skidded to a halt. His feet burned and dried up the mud under his feet. In front of him was a small shack that was slightly raised off the ground by pillars. The wooden shack had a porch with steps leading up to it. Torches were placed around it to light up the area. One small window revealed the inside of the house. It was brightly lit. But the outside of the house was strange. It was covered in skulls, dead bats, rats and other disgusting creatures. The torches that gave off the light hung from the walls. Sonic heard a strange noise coming from inside the house. He slowly walked up to the house. He walked up the stairs to porch. The wood squeaked loudly as he walked. As he got closer, the sounds from inside the building seeped through. What he heard was almost mystical. The sounds of boiling and bubbling liquid came from inside. Chanting from a crazed woman overshadowed the other noises. It was the same high pitched, scratchy voice that he was hearing in his head. As he approached, the voice became clearer.

"Flowers, both good and wicked, carry the doomed one through a thicket. Make him what he fears, bring his loved ones down to tears. Support him like a child, but make him rough and not mild. When all is finished, kill them all until the last one is diminished. Bat and snake, burn him in hell and kill him with a stake. For the fast one will die, but no one will be around to hear him cry. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" the voice chanted

The female voice chanted this over and over. Sonic, in his insane and influenced mind, enjoyed the song. It was dark and wonderful to his insane ear.

"Wonderful and wicked." Sonic whispered to himself

Sonic's robotic feet made their metallic sounds as he walked up to the door. He stopped at the door. There was the skull of a human hanging from it. It was old and decaying. He knocked on the door. The chanting suddenly stopped. A muffled voice came from deeper inside the house. It was weak and quiet.

"Don't worry my friend. I will get it." said the female's voice

Sonic had no idea what was to be expected behind this door. It could be a witch, it could be a just a regular person, or it could be a hermit. Whoever it was, he would either kill them, or leave them. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard footsteps coming towards the door. The footsteps stopped.

"Who is it?!" demanded the voice in a harsh tone

"It is the "Ghost". Who are you?" responded Sonic

"AH! "Ghost" My boy! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! How lovely!" screamed the voice in an overjoyed tone

The door squeaked open. The figure on the other side of the door was both strange, but familiar for some reason. She was an old, hunched over female rabbit. She was grayed in the face and had wrinkles all over her. Her eyes were dark and crazy. She wore a dark brown, torn tunic. She wore a purple cape with gold stars over it. A large turban was on her head with large gold hoop earrings hanging from her long rabbit ears. She was much shorter than Sonic with her hunched back. She also seemed to twitch and shake occasionally. Her old face was joyful and inviting. She took her old and bony hand and took Sonic's chin.

"Ahh, you are even more stronger than he told me you would be." she said, turning his head, inspecting him, "Such a strong hedgehog, what a specimen."

She noticed Sonic holding Tails' crown.

"And you brought his crown, how wonderful!" She exclaimed in a joyful laugh

"Hello ma'am. Who are you?" Sonic asked

The woman let go and stepped back.

"Why I am Katherine the Rabbit. But I am famous throughout the Kingdom as a fortune teller." she greeted

Sonic was amazed by this. He remembered Amy, that slut, telling him about an old woman like this. He remembered her telling that this rabbit was a fortune teller. Sonic had no idea what to think of all this though.

"Do I know you?" Sonic asked

Katherine laughed a crazy, high-pitched laugh. It sounded like nails against a chalkboard.

"Of course you do my dear. Here, I will explain it all to you inside. Come in, come in." she said, motioning for him to enter

She stepped to the side, and Sonic walked in. The house was small and beyond strange. A smell of rotting flesh filled the room. The eerie, smoke filled air made it almost hard to see. The interior was one large room. In the middle was a fire with a massive caldron over it. A strange green, soup bubbled inside of it. The soup must have been the cause of the rotting flesh-like smell inside. Along the walls, shelves full of voodoo, and other witchcraft-like items gave a creepy feel to the house. Dead animals and other horrifying things like eyeballs, wings, teeth, talons, and even heads hung from the ceiling. There were two beds on the far wall. One was empty, but the other was occupied. It was occupied by an very old man covered in sheets. When Sonic saw who was laying in the bed, his mouth dropped open.

"Snively! What are you doing here?!" screamed Sonic

The decrepit old man slowly sat up. His entire body was wrinkled and his hair was white. His long nose was red and his eyes were caved in. A long crazy white beard came from his face. His limbs were thin and his bones were showing. When he looked at Sonic, he made a weak smile and his eyes lit up. He slowly raised his shaking hand towards Sonic.

"Ahh, Sonic. Come close my friend, come close." he said weakly

Sonic looked over at Katherine. She nodded in approval and Sonic walked over to Snively. He knelt next to the bed and Snively examined the hedgehog.

"It has been a long time, hasn't it? Last time I remember you, you supposedly killed Dr. Eggman." he chuckled

"How are you still alive?" Sonic asked in disbelief

Snively chuckled, but it turned into a cough.

"I do not know honestly. But I am lucky. Not many humans live past 90-years-old. But here I am." he said, still coughing

It was a revelation for Sonic to see his old enemy. It had been well over 20 years since he had seen Dr. Eggman's old henchman. He remembered that night quite well. It was the day the Freedom Fighters finally freed the Kingdom from tyranny. That event set in motion the slow decline of Dr. Eggman's power. If Sonic had ever guessed that Snively was still alive, he would have never stopped fighting. It sent a shiver down his spine to think that this wretch was still alive.

"Tell me my friend. What do you think you are here for?" Snively asked

"I don't know. But that is not the pressing matter. What are you doing here? If you are still alive, I need to kill you like I killed your master." Sonic growled, slowly standing up

Sonic clenched his firsts and his face turned angered. He would kill this enemy of the Acorn Kingdom, and bring more peace to the kingdom. It would be fast and easy. Suddenly, a hand was placed on his shoulder. Sonic looked over at who was touching him. It was Katherine.

"What?" he asked in a dark tone

"Listen my dear. He is the one who has brought you here. You should thank him." she said

"Why should I?" he asked, looking back at Snively

"Because without him, you would never have gotten your legs back." she said, grinning

Sonic looked over at her quickly and stared in shock.

"What do you mean?!" He exclaimed

Katherine grinned. Sonic was still following her influence. He was like a primitive cat chasing a laser. With him in her grasp, she could accomplish anything.

"Come over and sit. I will explain everything to you." she said, hobbling over to the chairs that were around the pot.

Sonic followed and they both sat around the pot. Her face seemed ghostly through the green mist that was bubbling up from liquid. Sonic sat and stared at her intently. Katherine took out a spoon and started stirring the liquid. As soon as she started stirring, Sonic felt the Chaos Control feeling shoot through him. He felt the need for guidance from her. It seemed this strange liquid was what gave off the Chaos Control feeling. That was the reason for Eggman living after his death. That was the reason for him being supported this whole time. It was amazing for Sonic to think that such dark magic could do things like that.

Katherine didn't look up at him. She just stared at the pot.

"When Snively escaped those many years ago, he wasn't alone. I was there with him. Those reasons I can't explain. My old memory is fading unfortunately. But after that, we hid here. We spent many years planning our revenge on the Freedom Fighters. We waited and waited, coming up with the perfect plot. We soon realized we needed an opportunity to set our plan in motion. The opportunity to take our revenge was given when Dr. Eggman supposedly died 20 years ago. I used my magic to keep him alive. I influenced him to create his army of robots. He was quite easy to influence."

Sonic jumped up and pointed at Katherine. He was furious at this news. She was a witch who had killed hundreds of innocent people.

"You did all of this?!" He screamed

She laughed and looked up at him with a smiling face.

"Yes, but without this. You would still be in a wheelchair. Wouldn't you?" she asked

Sonic thought about it. This was the reason he got his speed back. Without her, he would still be a cripple. He did love having his legs back and he would give anything to keep them. He guessed the good outweighed the bad. Sonic calmed himself and slowly sat down in his seat again.

"Fine, continue." Sonic said coldly

"I learned about your guilt, regret, and need for adventure. I told Snively, and we decided to help you. For many years, we tried to tell you subconsciously, but it didn't work. You were blind, you still thought Amy and Tails were friends. But you and I both know, once a Freedom Fighter, always a Freedom Fighter. I decided to show you the truth. So I tried many times to show you to realize the truth. I tried through many different methods, but you were very resilient. But eventually, you realized the truth, and accepted your destiny. One day, I was visited by your wife, Amy, and that was when we knew to signal Eggman to begin fighting again. One thing led to another, and now you are here, and you have met the ones who have kept your fighting spirit alive all these years."

Sonic looked down and started laughing. It was a shocking revelation. He looked back up at Katherine with a crazed face.

"So you are the voice I have been hearing. Ha ha ha... You are the one who has kept me energized for this time. Thank you for making me realize the truth. Ha ha ha..." Sonic said happily

Katherine stood up and hobbled over to one of the shelves on the walls. She reached up and grabbed a clay bowl.

"You are welcome my dear. Now, you need to maintain your strength if you are to continue fighting the Freedom Fighters." she said, walking back over to him

Sonic put down Tails' crown and gratefully took the bowl. He looked at the contents inside. The soup inside was a dark brown grog full of chunks of meat and other disgusting things. Sonic was thankful for the soup, no matter how disgusting and alien it looked. He drank the soup like a ravenous dog. It tasted like mud mixed with rum. It tasted disgusting, but he needed it. The warm soup washed down his throat. After he was finished, he wiped his mouth.

"Thank you Katherine. I never thought I would be getting help from a witch, or him." Sonic said, looking over at Snively coldly

Snively smiled at him cheerfully.

"Sonic, I have changed, I have turned a new leaf, and am trying to help the Kingdom." he said calmly

Sonic was still doubtful of him, but trusted Katherine. She had been right this whole time, she must be right about him. Sonic then looked back at her with a questioning look.

"What now?" he asked

Katherine walked over and sat down. She stared at him for a second.

"Do you remember your so called "friend", Rob O' Hedge?" she asked coldly

Sonic did remember Rob. The aging cousin of Amy who helped, and fought along side him for all those months against the Acorn Kingdom. He was a loyal friend. They shared a special bond together. He loved Rob. That hedgehog never did anything wrong or wanted to bring harm to anything. He was fair and truthful.

"Yes, I remember Rob. Why?" Sonic replied

"Kill him." she said flatly

Sonic jumped up in shock. He stepped back and gasped. He was horrified by what her orders were. She had gone too far now. He would never hurt Rob, and Rob would never hurt him.

"What!? No, I can't kill Rob! He is my friend! He fought with me against the Freedom Fighters!" Sonic exclaimed

Katherine grew a sorrowful face and looked down. She shook her head slowly.

"You are so naive my child. Do you not remember that he is the cousin of Amy Rose, a Freedom Fighter? Surely he would side with his own cousin, not you." she explained

Sonic was about to interject, but was interrupted.

"Also, remember when you asked him to help you fight the robots? He refused to help you. Wouldn't he want to help if he was a true ally to the Kingdom?" she continued

Sonic took in what she said. She was right. It would make sense for him to support his own family rather than his friend. And refusing to fight with him was unacceptable. It all pointed to Rob being an enemy of the kingdom who wanted it to fall. He was against the Kingdom.

"You're right." Sonic said, looking down in shame "I can't believe I trusted him. He is truly an evil person. I will do as you say."

Katherine grew a demonic smile on her ancient face. He was like a puppet for her to control. He would do whatever she told him to, and he never even realized it. The hilarious thing to her was that he actually believed it was his own will that was making him do all these things. Such a foolish hedgehog. One would think that after 20 years of maturing, he would become wiser.

Sonic and Katherine stood up. He picked up Tails' crown and was about to turn and leave when Snively called out to him.

"Sonic, come here. I have something to say to you." he called

Sonic turned around and slowly approached the old man. He knelt down next to the bed. Snively looked up at him and smiled.

"Would you honor and old man's request? I have been waiting my whole life to see that crown that you posses. Do you think you can let me keep it? It would be a great honor for me to have it." Snively requested in an innocent tone

Sonic nodded solemnly.

"I understand." Sonic said, handing him the crown

Snively took in gently and held it close to him. He smiled at Sonic. Sonic felt good actually. Giving the old man this gift meant a lot to both of them, but also signified something else. They had won,Dr. Eggman and Snively had finally won. The crown to the Kingdom was in their possession now, and not with the rightful king. All had officially been lost. Katherine hobbled over to him and at him.

"Be careful "Ghost", you still must kill Amy and Tails."

Sonic nodded and stood up. He sprinted out of the house. He left a blue blur behind him and a gust of wind shook the contents inside the house, making them jingle and rattle. Seconds later, a sonic boom could be heard several miles away. Katherine hobbled over to the open door and looked out to the murky world around her. She saw the trail that was left by Sonic. She grinned evilly when she thought of how gullible he was. Suddenly, she heard slow footsteps behind her. She turned her head around and saw Snively slowly approaching her. He walked with a simple stick as a cane. He reached the door and stood beside her. They both stared out at the swampy landscape silently. The world they lived in was dark and depressing. The skulls on the wooden stakes that outlined the house kept many travelers away, and that was good. Because if they were found, they would not be able to escape, despite the witch's powers. After a few minutes, Snively exhaled.

"Do you remember what we do after he has killed the Freedom Fighters?" he asked suspiciously

Katherine smiled even bigger and laughed.

"Yes indeed. Convince him that he is a Freedom Fighter too, and have him kill himself." she said, laughing

Snively laughed as well. His carefully formulated plan was coming to a close.

"I have waited so long to finish off that hedgehog. My goal of killing off every Mobian was never accomplished. But I am glad you will complete it." Snively said, patting Katherine on her hunched back

The two conspirators knew exactly what they were doing. Snively, Dr. Eggman's second in command for a long time, had always dreamed of killing off every Mobian, and letting humans take old once again. But after their last defeat, he knew he needed to hide and bide his time. If only the fat one had died sooner. But better late than never. Even if he had to teach an apprentice to carry out his goals, he would eventually reach the glorious day where humans ruled Mobius like they had before. But those Freedom fighters had always been a problem for him. Now, soon, his dream would become reality.

For Katherine, being a witch always had its ups and downs. This was an up for her. She was so much more powerful than she had been before. Before, she had been just a rabbit who was helping Dr. Eggman and Snively before they were defeated. She loved the dark arts and the power they contained. Once Sonic was dead, she would kill this insignificant Snively, and take control of all of Mobius. That was all she ever wanted, power. The only thing that would stand in her way after this, was that pesky Echidna guarding the Master Emerald. She would kill him, and there would be no one left in Mobius powerful enough to stop her. She was so close to domination, she could almost taste it.

The two evildoers didn't realize something though. The heroes that fought against Sonic, were more than capable of defeating them. But at this point in time, hope seemed out of reach for the heroes. But to the villains, their goals were almost complete.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. So, there is a witch, and SNIVELY! Do any of you remember that Snively was in Sonic Satam? Yeah, and he survived the final episode, and he was not alone. So yeah, I have just revealed the bad guys here, and what their plan is. Does anybody now understand why Sonic id doing everything? I hope this chapter has cleared up a lot. Well, as always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow.**

**PS: Don't forget to follow me as an author, and not just the story. **

**Until next time, pa pa!**

**Happy summer! I know what I'm doing this summer. What about you?**


	18. Couple

"**Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."**

**-Colossians 3:2**

Tails was up in the command center, desperately finding Sonic's location and contacting what was left of the Acorn Kingdom. Amy and Clare were doing whatever a mom and daughter do. Sparky and Lilly were sitting around the TV of the Freedom Fighter HQ. A show was on, but they didn't pay any attention to it. Sparky was sitting in the armchair and Lilly was laying on the couch. They were not talking to each other, they were busy. Sparky was fixing the string on his bow, making it tighter, and checking the shaft's bending capability. Lilly was tinkering with the mechanism inside her crossbow. It was incredibly quiet in the room. They were both lost in deep thought. Sparky was thinking about Clare, and why she had rejected him the last night. It was not like her to act so hostile. He hadn't done anything wrong had he? He still needed to work up the courage to go ask her why she was acting this way. But for right now, spending time with Lilly seemed to be the only restful thing right now.

Lilly was thinking about about why Sparky and Clare were ever fighting. She had seen how Sparky showed a lot of affection for Clare, but she was not showing it back. From their talks, he had said that Clare loved him and acted cute around him. What happened to it all? Why did it seem like he had been lying. Lilly had really looked forward to meeting Clare, and seeing how she acted around Sparky. But this seemed to not be the case. Clare was acting hostile, Sparky was confused.

Sparky looked up from his bow at Lilly. She had her hood down and was concentrating on her crossbow. Sweat dripped from her nose from her diligent work.

"Hey Lilly." Sparky asked

Lilly looked up at him.

"Yeah?"

"Why do you think Clare is acting the way she is? You're a girl, did I do something wrong?" he asked

Lilly looked down and let out a "hmph" noise. She wasn't quite sure either. She looked back up at him.

"I don't know, maybe you said something. Maybe you should talk to her." she suggested

Sparky was surprised by the suggestion, even Lilly knew it was the right thing to do. He had been trying to talk to her, but they never had the chance. It seemed something was always going wrong at the time when he wanted to talk to her. Sparky leaned his head back and sighed.

"I guess." he said

Suddenly, one of the doors opened. Sparky and Lilly both looked over at the door. Amy and Clare walked outside. Clare was holding a black ball of cloth. Amy was holding an ancient crossbow and three arrows. Sparky and Lilly were amazed by the two. Lilly looked at the crossbow with envy. She could immediately tell, that that crossbow was no ordinary crossbow. That weapon was the great crossbow of the hedges. It was passed down through the ages, and only used by one family. Nobody had ever known which family used it, but it was all clear now. Amy's family was the gifted family that would hold the crossbow of the hedges. Sparky looked at Clare with awe. She was going out with her mother to practice using the crossbow. Clare was going to become an archer! This was the best day of his life. His dream girl was about to be an archer, like him. He loved it.

"Hey Clare!" he called

Amy and Clare stopped. They turned and faced him.

"Oh hey Sparky," she said flatly, then glared at Lilly, "and Lilly." she said coldly

"Where you two going?" he asked

"Just into the woods to practice shooting." Amy answered

Sparky and Lilly shared smiling glances. They then looked back at the two.

"Well, good luck Clare, and be careful. Sonic is still out there." Sparky warned

Amy nodded and suddenly turned sad. She looked down at the ground for a second, then looked back up.

"Yeah... I know." she said

Amy then quickly walked up the stairs, out of the room. Clare looked at them with scolding eyes. She began walking up to the stairs.

"Don't do it too hard while we're gone." she growled as she walked up the stairs

Lilly let out a surprised gasp. Sparky let a nervous smile appear. His eyes dotted back and forth nervously. That was a terrible thing for her to say. Did she really think they were going to do that while she was gone? Something was seriously up with Clare that he needed to find out. Once Clare was out of the Freedom Fighter HQ, Sparky looked over at Lilly, who was twiddling her thumbs, trying to not think of what Clare had said. Sparky formed a plan in his head. It was a stupid plan, but it was as good a plan as any.

"Hey Lilly," he said, Lilly looked at him. "I'm going to follow them. I'll see if I can talk to her. Mrs. Rose knows what the problem is, and wants me to address it. She will understand. I'm going."

Sparky stood up and grabbed his bow. He checked the arrows in his quiver. 20, good. He ran up the stairs and left. Lilly looked in the direction he ran and thought about it all. Sparky was a friend of hers, and they both knew that they would stay friends. She wanted Sparky to fix this problem that he had somehow created. If he didn't, Clare may end up making a very bad decision during a critical fight with Sonic. Lilly looked down at her crossbow, which was on her lap. She smirked.

"Go get her Sparky." she said to herself

Suddenly, she heard footsteps from the staircase. Lilly looked over and saw King Tails walking over to her. He had a confused and terrified expression.

"Where is everybody?" he asked worriedly

"Amy, Clare, and Sparky are out practicing with in the woods. Why?" she replied

Tails looked at her gravely and swallowed hard.

"Because Sonic is on the move, and he isn't headed for a village or military base." he said quietly

It took a few seconds for her to narrow down where Sonic might be heading. Her expression changed from one of questioning, to one of fright and fear. Her mouth gaped open in shock. She jumped up from the couch and grabbed her crossbow.

"We need to stop him!" she yelled, loading a bolt into the weapon

Tails nodded and ran with Lilly up the stairs. As they were running, Tails grabbed the pilot's helmet from the hat rack and put it on. They needed to go find the others and warn them. But there would be a problem. It was summer, the trees were in full bloom this time of year. There was no way of being able to see the ground under the leafs. But they had to try, Sonic was headed for Rob O' Hedge's house, and he needed to be stopped.

Sparky slowly walked through the forest. He had picked up on the tracks of Amy and Clare. They had left slight flat marks on the grass from their feet. It was hard to see them however, due to the sun going down. The evening sky was getting darker every hour, and soon, the world would be lit by a full moon, and the stars. Sparky followed the tracks slowly and cautiously. He did not want them to see him. He wanted to see Clare practice shooting before interrupting them. As he walked along, Sparky noticed something etched into a tree. He walked over to it. It was a heart with S+A etched inside of it. Sparky immediately knew it meant Sonic plus Amy.

"Wow, that survived all these years?" he said to himself, running his finger over the S

The carving struck something inside of him. It felt strange and alien, like a virus he could feel. He felt like there was deeper meaning to this forest than he realized. There were memories that haunted the air around here. He had felt it ever since they arrived at the Freedom Fighter HQ. They had all felt it, he had seen it in Amy and Tails' eyes. He saw tears welling up in the adults' eyes. Their slow and thoughtful movements through the base and area confirmed this. Sparky longed to know what it must have been like in those days, how exciting it must have been. To think of all the danger, mixed with fun. Now, it seemed like it was only danger and the horror of thinking you might not live the next day. Rob had always told him stories of things the Freedom Fighters did before they turned evil. Sparky wished for those days, and for those days to come back so he could live them.

"I better keep moving." he whispered to himself, patting the tree

Sparky continued on, following the tracks. As he continued, he began to hear voices in the distance. They sounded familiar. They sounded like Amy and Clare's voices. They were talking and laughing occasionally. Sparky climbed the nearest tree and perched himself on a tree branch. He looked out and spotted two figures. One was pink and had a green dress on. The other was draped in a black hood and cape. Keeping one hand on the branch, he pulled out his binoculars and looked at the figure in the cloak. The figure turned around, and he made out who it was. It was Clare! She was wearing the legendary hood and cape of the "Ghost"! Sparky slowly removed the binoculars. He stared at her with an astonished face. It suddenly made him realize something.

"She's taking his place." he said

All the kids at their old high-school had always said that Clare would never take her father's place. She would never be like him. But this revelation proved all that wrong. She was indeed, taking her father's place. She was wearing the hood and cape, she was fighting like her mother, she was fighting for freedom, and she was doing it all because she had too. Sparky watched with diligent eyes as Clare practiced with the crossbow.

He watched her for what seemed like hours. He saw her shoot at a target with one hand, and miss. But Amy taught her what to do. He saw Clare shoot at the many different targets Amy set up for her. Every shot was a new lesson. She slowly learned from Amy's lessons. He watched how Amy taught her how to hold it properly, and how to aim it. He watched Clare slowly learn how to keep steady while aiming, and how to shoot accurately. He saw Amy teach her how to load it, and how it worked. He watched as Amy taught where to aim for the best kill shot. He watched as Amy taught her about drop-off rate, and the arch of a bolt. He watched as she taught Clare how to compensate for wind. He saw her learn how to aim and shoot quickly. He saw how Amy showed her how to shoot while running, and how to shoot while jumping. As the hours dragged on, Sparky noticed a change going on in Clare. He saw her starting to hit almost every target. He saw her load it faster than he had seen before. He saw her become more serious and aware. He saw her become more competent with the weapon she held. He saw her becoming more strategic in her thinking. He saw her compensate for shots that he had thought she could never hit. While her aim was not perfect, her calculations incorrect sometimes, and occasionally dropping the bolt while reloading, Clare was quite deadly with her crossbow. She was not perfect, nowhere near perfect, but she had changed for the better. She now understood what to do, and how to do it. She just wasn't as good on actually doing it. It would still take years of training and persistence to get close to where he and Lilly were in their skills. But everything she had learned in the few hours of this night, most could learn. Clare showed potential to be an amazing archer, it ran in the family blood. But she needed many more years and a lot more practice to be great. For right now, she could defend herself, and hunt effectively. She needed more help, but she was good for now.

"Dang, that was a good shot." Sparky said to himself, watching Clare hit an apple off a tree

Amy turned around, looking for another target. Even though it was now night out, and the moon and stars were the only light, Amy could see everything very clearly. As she looked around the trees, she spotted a black form in the distance. It was sitting on a tree branch. For a brief moment, she thought it was Sonic. But then she saw the blue scarf, and let out a sigh of relief. Sparky was here, and he had seen the whole thing. This was good, she needed Sparky to talk to Clare. They needed a good relationship talk. Amy looked back at Clare, who was pulling the hood off her head, revealing her purple quills.

"Wait here, I need to go get something." Amy said, smiling

Clare nodded and continued working with her crossbow. Amy walked a couple hundred yards through the forest towards the tree where Sparky was perched. Sparky saw her coming, but stayed still. As she walked up, Amy looked up at Sparky. She stopped below the branch and they looked at each other. Amy put her hands on her hips and tilted her head. A grin appeared on her face.

"I think I know why you're here." she said

"Maybe." Sparky replied, looking over at Clare

"Well, get down from there and go over to her. It is as good a time as any." she said

Sparky sighed and jumped down from the branch.

"Fine." he groaned, walking past Amy

They walked over to Clare. Clare looked over at them and was shocked. She took a step back in surprise.

"Sparky! What are you doing here." she asked in disbelief

Sparky grinned nervously and scratched his quills. He was silent and nervous. His cheeks turned red with embarrassment. Amy stepped forward.

"He is here to talk to you." Amy said

Sparky and Clare looked at each other. Clare's stare was cold and unforgiving. Sparky's was nervous and speechless. Amy smiled.

"I'll go look for some firewood." she said, walking away

Sparky and Clare stood in front of each other for a few more seconds. Sparky had no idea how to start, or where to start. Clare was standing there, expecting something along the lines of a break up speech. What she got was not what she was expecting. Sparky finally grew the courage and began to talk.

"Clare, what have I done wrong? Ever since Lilly came back with me, you have acted really rude. What's up?" he asked

Clare folded her arms and stared at him coldly.

"You know what you did you cheater." she said

"But I don't know what I did! Can you just tell me?" he said, raising his voice

"You really want to know?" she asked

"YES!" he shouted

"Well, I guess I should start with the fact that you made me believe ever since we met that you liked me, and that you would be with me always. But as soon as the bitch showed up, you left me and started flirting with her. We all know you and her are a couple, but you still act like you have a crush on me. Why are you cheating on me, and on her?! You should know better!" Clare shouted

Sparky was taken aback by the statement. So that is what the problem was? She though Lilly and Sparky were a couple? He needed to set things strait, and tell it how it is.

"Clare listen, I am really surprised that you would think that. Lilly and I are friends and nothing else. We share common interests, and that is it. I was amazed that you didn't hang out with us while we were back at the palace. If you wanted to hang out, just ask. Listen, Lilly and I are not a couple, we are friends. I have always liked you more, you are my girlfriend, and I want to treat you like one. I wouldn't do anything with Lilly that I thought might be flirtatious."

Clare let a tear fall.

"THAT IS NOT TRUE! I saw you two flirting like crazy when you two got back tot he palace! You two were flirting more than the girls did at high-school. Don't try and fool me with that."

"Why can't you listen to me? Lilly is a friend and nothing else. We were just messing around..."

"Oh you got that right." she interrupted

"Just be quiet for a second!" Sparky shouted, getting angry

Clare immediately shut up and stared at him with a terrified face. He had scared her, crap. He didn't mean to. Sparky felt incredibly guilty.

"I'm sorry Clare. I just am so hurt that you think I would cheat on you. That fact makes me feel sick. I love you, but you don't trust me. Why would I cheat on you? You are nice, funny, attractive, pleasant to be around, and all around cute. I like Lilly as a friend, and I wish you could understand that." Sparky said softly

Clare was shocked by his kind words. He really did care for her. But she still thought it might be a trick.

"Sparky, no matter how many times you say those things. I can never believe them. You have just been acting so rude to me and shunning me away, I can't love you anymore." Clare said quietly

Sparky couldn't believe what he was hearing. Clare would not listen to him. There was no other way for him to get the message across to her. He loved her, but she didn't think he did, and there seemed to be nothing he could do to change that. Sparky began to get angry. She was blind to the fact that neither Sparky, nor Lilly were in a relationship.

"Clare, how can you be so blind to the truth! And what business do you have saying that I have been shunning you away? You have not let me even talk to you for several days! You are a hypocrite! I have been trying my best to make you understand what is really happening, but you just won't realize it! Why?!" Sparky shouted

"Sparky, if you don't stop shouting at me, I will put a bolt through your eye!" Clare shouted back

This was not good, she had started a fight.

"Oh yeah, I'm sure you will be able to hit my eye after a few hours of training. You don't know what it's like being trained for years. I could hit you faster than you could think of a spot!" Sparky shouted back

"If you need help, why don't you go get your girlfriend! I'm sure she would love to help you!"

"You think she is my girlfriend!? Why do you think that?! I may just end up going out with her after this is all done if you keep acting like a... like a..." he began to studder, he didn't want to say it

"GO ahead, say it! You aren't brave enough to say it!" she taunted

Sparky was done with Clare. She was acting too rude and mean for him to like her. He was boiling with rage.

"Like a bitch!" he screamed

As soon as he yelled that word, he felt horrible He felt as if he had just killed a child. His face turned red with embarrassment and filled with sorrow. He regretted all of what he had just screamed. But the look on Clare's face almost killed him. She was beginning to cry. She sniffled and whimpered. Her face was turning red as well. Sparky knew he had hurt her. He couldn't live with himself knowing that. He stared at Clare with regretful eyes.

"I'm... I'm... s-" he said quietly

Clare raised a finger to stop him. She was now crying openly.

"Just go." she said between sobs

Sparky stepped back. He was more sorry than he had ever been. He began to shake his head slowly.

"No... I-"

"Just go!" she screamed

Sparky turned around and ran. He ran through the forest as fast as he could. He couldn't face the fact that he had just called Clare a bitch. There were not enough words that could describe has terrible he felt inside. He had never hurt a girl before, and he never wanted to. But now, he had hurt the one girl had had a crush on for a long time. This was a terrible reality for him to cope with. As he ran through he forest, he saw Amy picking up wood. She spotted him as he ran by.

"Sparky? What happened?" she asked worriedly

"I'm sorry!" he screamed as he ran

Sparky ran and ran and ran and ran. HE ran until his legs were too weak to run. But he wasn't running blindly, he was running towards the only thing he had as a home. He was running back to Rob O' Hedge's house. That was his only home, and that was where he could turn to. Rob would be disappointed in him. He was taught to be a good person towards girls.

"Why did I say it?" he whispered to himself

As he ran, Sparky realized he was crying as well. He wiped the tears from his eyes and ran faster. But when he reached the clearing of Rob's house. Sparky fell to his knees. He put his hands over his mouth to stop the ear-piercing scream that was bound to come. His eyes blurred with tears as he cried openly. He then fell forward and was on all fours. He looked back up at the house and sobbed. He felt a scream bubbling up in his chest. He opened his mouth and let the scream out.

"NNNNOOOOOOOOO! RRRROOOOBBBB! WWWWWHHHHHYYYYY?!" he screamed

His scream echoes through the forest for miles. It was a scream of pure sorrow and regret. Sparky's arms collapsed and he let his forehead hit the ground. He looked back up at the house. The house in front of him was totaled. All its windows were shattered, the garden ripped up, the door broken down, and the interior was completely ripped apart. Sonic had been here. Sparky couldn't believe it. Sonic had finally hit home with him. He had taken what Sparky held so close to his heart.

Sonic had now killed something. He had killed any mercy that was in Sparky's heart.

**Hello everybody! Papapa here to give you an update. I AM SOO SORRY about how long it took me to update. There has been so much going on in my life that I have had to postpone my star wars story, write this, and correct another story. But now, I am free, and have so much time to do whatever I want. So expect the chapters to be coming out quickly again. Also, I am almost done with this story! Yes, this story is coming to a dramatic close. And one last thing, one of my followers, and friends, has started a forum on fanfiction where you can just talk, and discuss whatever you want with her, or with others. If you want the link, PM me and I will give it to you. As always, please leave a review or PM and don't forget to favorite and follow. Until next time, pa pa!**


End file.
